li  A  • 


S    &  ,•  CAS'  T.'M 


REESE  LIBRARY 


I 

OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA. 


£.<        ^ 

[See  p.  14* 
"  THERE    STOOD,  IX  ALL   HIS   MAJESTY,  THE   GRAY  CHIEFTAIX  " 


R.ed  Hunters 

1 

g  And  the   Ai\ima.l   People 

\ 

%  By 

Charles  A.   EaLstma.n 

%  (Ohiyesa) 

'  '  AUTHOR    OF    "  INDIAN    BOYHOOD  " 


K        N 


ew     York     a.nd     Lond 


on 


Publisher 


Brothers 

3        1904 


Copyright,  1904,  by  HARPER  &  BROTHERS. 

All  rights  reserved. 
Published  November,  1904. 


Contents 


PAGE 


THE  GREAT  CAT'S  NURSERY 3 

ON  WOLF  MOUNTAIN 24 

THE  DANCE  OF  THE  LITTLE  PEOPLE     ....  46 

WECHAH  THE  PROVIDER 66 

THE  MUSTERING  OF  THE  HERDS 89 

THE  SKY  WARRIOR 106 

A  FOUNDER  OF  TEN  TOWNS 123 

THE  GRAY  CHIEFTAIN 143 

HOOTAY  OF  THE  LlTTLE  ROSEBUD 159 

THE  RIVER  PEOPLE 177 

THE  CHALLENGE 200 

WILD  ANIMALS  FROM  THE  INDIAN  STAND-POINT.  224 

GLOSSARY  OF  INDIAN  WORDS  AND  PHRASES  .     .  247 


Foreword 

"  AND  who  is  the  grandfather  of  these  silent 
/i  people  ?  Is  it  not  the  Great  Mystery  ? 
For  they  know  the  laws  of  their  life  so  well ! 
They  must  have  for  their  Maker  our  Maker. 
Then  they  are  our  brothers!" 

Thus  spoke  one  of  the  philosophers  and 
orators  of  the  Red  men. 

It  is  no  wonder  that  the  Indian  held  the 
animals  to  be  his  brothers.  In  his  simple 
mind  he  regards  the  killing  of  certain  of  them 
for  his  sustenance  to  be  an  institution  of  the 
"Great  Mystery."  Therefore  he  kills  them 
only  as  necessity  and  the  exigencies  of  life 
demand,  and  not  wantonly.  He  regards  the 
spirit  of  the  animal  as  a  mystery  belonging 
to  the  " Great  Mystery,"  and  very  often 
after  taking  its  life  he  pays  due  homage  to 
its  spirit.  In  many  of  the  Dakota  legends 
it  appeared  that  such  and  such  an  animal 


Foreword 

came  and  offered  itself  as  a  sacrifice  to  save 
the  Red  man  from  starvation. 

It  was  formerly  held  by  him  that  the  spir 
its  of  animals  may  communicate  important 
messages  to  man.  The  wild  hunter  often 
refused  during  the  remainder  of  his  life  to 
kill  certain  animals,  after  he  had  once  be 
come  acquainted  with  their  spirit  or  inner 
life.  Many  a  hunter  has  absented  himself 
for  days  and  nights  from  his  camp  in  pur 
suit  of  this  knowledge.  He  considered  it 
sacrilege  to  learn  the  secrets  of  an  animal 
and  then  use  this  knowledge  against  him. 
If  you  wish  to  know  his  secrets  you  must 
show  him  that  you  are  sincere,  your  spirit 
and  his  spirit  must  meet  on  common  ground, 
and  that  is  impossible  until  you  have  aban 
doned  for  the  time  being  your  habitation, 
your  weapons,  and  all  thoughts  of  the  chase, 
and  entered  into  perfect  accord  with  the  wild 
creatures.  Such  were  some  x)f  the  most 
sacred  beliefs  of  the  Red  man,  which  led  him 
to  follow  the  trails  of  the  animal  people  into 
seclusion  and  the  wildest  recesses  of  the 
woods  and  mountains. 

Observations  made  for  the  purposes  of 
the  hunt  are  entirely  distinct  from  this,  the 
vi 


Foreword 

"  spirit  hunt,"  and  include  only  the  out 
ward  habits  and  noticeable  actions  of  the 
game. 

The  stories  contained  in  this  book  are 
based  upon  the  common  experiences  and 
observations  of  the  Red  hunter.  The  main 
incidents  in  all  of  them,  even  those  which 
are  unusual  and  might  appear  incredible  to 
the  white  man,  are  actually  current  among 
the  Sioux  and  deemed  by  them  worthy  of 
belief. 

When  the  life-story  of  an  animal  is  given, 
the  experiences  described  are  typical  and 
characteristic  of  its  kind.  Here  and  there 
the  fables,  songs,  and  superstitious  fancies 
of  the  Indian  are  brought  in  to  suggest  his 
habit  of  mind  and  manner  of  regarding  the 
four-footed  tribes. 

The  scene  of  the  stories  is  laid  in  the  great 
Northwest,  the  ancient  home  of  the  Dakota 
or  Sioux  nation,  my  people.  The  Great 
Pipestone  Quarry,  Eagle's  Nest  Butte,  the 
Little  Rosebud  River,  and  all  the  other 
places  described  under  their  real  names  are 
real  and  familiar  features  of  that  country, 
which  now  lies  mainly  within  the  States  of 
Minnesota  and  the  Dakotas.  The  time  is 
vii 


Foreword 

before   1870,   when   the   buffalo   and    other 
large  game  still  roamed  the  wilderness  and 
the  Red  men  lived  the  life  I  knew  as  a  boy. 
OHIYESA  (CHARLES  A.  EASTMAN). 

AMERST,  MASS. 


Red   Hunters    and  the  Animal 
People 


The    Great   Cat's    Nursery 


A  HARSH  and  hateful  cry  of  a  sudden 
broke  the  peace  of  a  midsummer  night 
upon  the  creek  called  Bear-runs-in-the- 
Lodge.  It  told  many  things  to  the  Red 
hunter,  who,  though  the  hour  was  late, 
still  sat  beside  the  dying  camp-fire,  pulling 
away  at  his  long-stemmed  pipe. 

"Ugh!"  he  muttered,  as  he  turned  his 
head  in  the  direction  of  the  deep  woods  and 
listened  attentively.  The  great  cat's  scream 
was  not  repeated.  The  hunter  resumed  his 
former  attitude  and  continued  to  smoke. 

The  night  was  sultry  and  threatened 
storm,  and  all  creatures,  especially  the 
fiercer  wild  animals,  become  nervous  and 
irritable  when  thunder  is  in  the  air.  Yet 
this  fact  did  not  fully  explain  to  his  mind 
Igmutanka's  woman-like,  almost  hysterical 
complaint. 

3 


Red   Hunters  and   the   Animal   People 

Having  finished  his  smoke,  he  emptied 
the  ashes  out  of  the  bowl  of  the  pipe  and 
laid  it  against  the  teepee-pole  at  his  back. 
"Ugh!"  the  hunter  once  more  muttered  to 
himself,  this  time  with  a  certain  com 
placency.  "  I  will  find  your  little  ones  to 
morrow!  That  is  what  you  fear." 

The  Bear-runs-in-the- Lodge  is  a  deep  and 
winding  stream,  a  tributary  of  the  Smoking 
Earth  River,  away  up  at  the  southern  end 
of  the  Bad  Lands.  It  is,  or  was  then,  an 
ideal  home  of  wild  game,  and  a  resort  for 
the  wild  hunters,  both  four  -  footed  and 
human.  Just  here  the  stream,  dammed  of 
many  beaver,  widens  its  timbered  bottoms, 
while  its  high  banks  and  the  rough  country 
beyond  are  studded  with  dwarf  pines  and 
gullied  here  and  there  with  canon-like  dry 
creeks. 

Here  the  silvertip  held  supreme  sway 
over  all  animals,  barring  an  occasional 
contest  with  the  mountain  lion  and  with 
the  buffalo  bull  upon  the  adjoining  plains. 
It  is  true  that  these  two  were  as  often 
victorious  as  he  of  the  big  claws  and  sharp 
incisors,  yet  he  remained  the  terror  of  that 
region,  for  he  alone  takes  every  opportunity 
4 


The   Greatt   Cast's  Nursery 

to  fight  and  is  reckless  in  his  courage,  while 
other  chiefs  of  the  Wild  Land  prefer  to 
avoid  unnecessary  trouble. 

Igmutanka,  the  puma  mother,  had  taken 
her  leave  of  her  two  little  tawny  babes 
about  the  middle  of  the  afternoon.  The 
last  bone  of  the  buffalo  calf  which  she  had 
brought  home  from  her  last  hunt  had  been 
served  for  dinner.  Polished  clean  by  her 
sharp  teeth,  it  lay  in  the  den  for  the  kittens 
to  play  with.  Her  mate  had  left  her  early 
on  that  former  hunt,  and  had  not  returned. 
She  was  very  nervous  about  it,  for  already 
she  feared  the  worst. 

Since  she  came  to  Bear-runs  they  had  been 
together,  and  their  chance  acquaintance  had 
become  a  love  affair,  and  finally  they  had 
chosen  and  made  a  home  for  themselves. 
That  was  a  home  indeed !  Wildness,  mystery, 
and  beauty  combined  in  its  outlook  and 
satisfied  every  craving  of  the  savage  pair. 
They  could  scarcely  say  that  it  was  quiet; 
for  while  they  were  unassuming  enough  and 
willing  to  mind  their  own  affairs,  Wild  Land 
is  always  noisy,  and  the  hubbub  of  the  wild 
people  quite  as  great  in  its  way  as  that  of 
the  city  of  man. 

5 


Red   Hunters   and  the    Animal   People 

The  stream  was  dammed  so  often  that 
Igmu  did  not  have  to  jump  it.  The  water- 
worn  cliffs,  arching  and  overhanging  every 
turn  of  the  creek,  were  dark  with  pines  and 
cedars.  Since  her  babies  came  she  had  not 
ventured  upon  any  long  hunts,  although 
ordinarily  she  was  the  more  successful  of  the 
two. 

Now  Igtin  was  gone  and  she  was  very 
hungry.  She  must  go  out  to  get  meat. 
So,  after  admonishing  her  babies  to  be  still 
during  her  absence,  and  not  to  come  out 
of  their  den  when  Shunktokecha,  the  wolf, 
should  invite  them  to  do  so,  she  went  away. 

As  the  great  cat  slunk  down  the  valley 
of  the  Bear -runs  she  stopped  and  glanced 
nervously  at  every  tree-root  and  grinning 
ledge  of  rock.  On  the  way  to  Blacktail 
Creek  she  had  to  cross  the  divide,  and  when 
she  had  attained  the  Porcupine  Butte  she 
paused  a  moment  for  a  survey,  and  saw  a 
large  herd  of  buffalo  lying  down.  But  their 
position  was  not  convenient  for  an  attack. 
There  was  no  meat  for  her  there. 

She  entered  the  upper  end  of  the  Blacktail 
and  began  to  hunt  down  to  its  mouth.  At 
the  first  gulch  there  was  a  fresh  trail.  On 
6 


The   GreaU   Cast's    Nursery 

that  very  morning  three  blacktail  deer  had 
watered  there. 

Igmu  withdrew  and  re-entered  the  valley 
lower  down.  She  took  her  stand  upon  a 
projection  of  the  bank  almost  overhanging 
the  stream,  a  group  of  buffalo -Berry  bushes 
partly  concealing  her  position.  Here  they 
will  pass,  she  thought,  in  returning  to  the 
main  stream.  Her  calculation  proved  correct. 
Soon  she  saw  a  doe  with  two  yearlings 
coming  towards  her,  leisurely  grazing"  on  the 
choice  grass. 

The  three  were  wholly  unconscious  of  their 
danger.  Igmu  flattened  her  long,  lanky 
body  against  the  ground — her  long,  snaky 
tail  slowly  moved  to  and  fro  as  the  animals 
approached.  In  another  moment  she  had 
sprung  upon  the  nearest  fawn!  A  shrill 
scream  of  agony  and  the  cracking  of  tender 
bones  mingled  with  the  gladness  of  satisfy 
ing  the  pangs  of  hunger.  The  mother  doe 
and  the  remaining  fawn  fled  for  their  lives 
over  the  hills  to  the  next  creek,  knowing 
well  that  she  would  not  expose  herself  in  an 
open  chase. 

She  stood  over  the  lifeless  body  for  a 
moment,  then  grabbed  it  by  the  neck  and 
7 


Red   Hunters    and  the   Animal   People 

dragged  it  into  the  dry  bed  of  a  small  creek, 
where  she  was  not  likely  to  be  disturbed  at 
her  feast.  The  venison  tasted  deliciously, 
especially  as  the  poor  nursing  mother  was 
almost  famished.  Having  eaten  all  she 
wanted,  she  put  her  claim-mark  on  the 
deer  and  covered  it  partly  up.  It  was  her 
practice  to  cover  her  game  to  season,  and 
also  to  make  it  plain  to  all  that  know  the 
laws  of  Wild  Land  that  it  is  her  game— 
Igmutanka's!  If  any  one  disturbs  it,  he  is 
running  great  risk  of  a  pitched  battle,  for 
nothing  exasperates  her  family  like  the  theft 
of  their  game. 

She  could  not  carry  any  of  it  home  with 
her,  for  even  while  she  feasted  she  had  seen 
an  enemy  pass  by  on  the  other  side  of  the 
creek.  He  rode  a  long -tailed  elk  (pony) 
and  carried  a  bagful  of  those  dreadful  winged 
willows,  and  the  crooked  stick  which  makes 
the  winged  willows  fly.  Igmu  stopped  eat 
ing  at  once  and  crouched  lower.  "  Don't 
you  dare  come  near  me,"  was  the  thought 
apparent  through  her  large,  round  eyes. 
The  man  passed  without  discovering  her 
retreat. 

"My  babies!"  thought  Igmu.  "They  are 
8 


The   GreaLt   Cast's    Nursery 

all  alone!"  The  mother-anxiety  seized  her. 
It  was  dangerous  now  to  cross  the  open, 
but  her  desire  to  get  back  to  her  babies  was 
stronger  than  fear.  She  ran  up  the  ravine 
as  far  as  it  went ;  then,  seeing  no  one,  ran 
like  a  streak  over  the  divide  to  the  Porcupine 
Butte,  where  there  were  large  rocks  piled 
one  upon  another.  Here  she  watched  again 
under  cover.  "  Aw-yaw-yaw !"  burst  from 
her  in  spite  of  herself.  There  were  many 
cone-shaped  teepees,  which  had  sprung  up 
since  the  day  before  upon  the  wide  plain. 

''There  are  the  homes  of  those  dreadful 
wild  men!  They  always  have  with  them 
many  dogs,  and  these  will  surely  find  my 
home  and  babies,"  she  thought.  Although 
her  anxiety  was  now  very  great,  and  the 
desire  to  reach  home  almost  desperate,  she 
yet  kept  her  animal  coolness  and  caution. 
She  took  a  winding  ravine  which  brought 
her  nearer  to  Bear-runs,  and  now  and  then 
she  had  to  run  swiftly  across  the  openings 
to  gain  less-exposed  points. 

At  last  she  came  to  the  old  stream,  and 

the  crossing  where  the  Bobtail  Beaver  had 

lived  for  as  long  as  she  knew  anything  about 

that    country.     Her    dam    was    always    in 

9 


Red   Hunters    and  the   Animal   People 

perfect  order,  and  afforded  an  excellent 
bridge.  To  be  sure,  they  had  never  been 
exactly  on  calling  terms,  but  they  had  be 
come  accustomed  to  one  another  as  neigh 
bors,  and  especially  whenever  danger  threat 
ened  upon  the  Bear-runs  there  was  a  certain 
sense  of  security  and  satisfaction  to  each  in 
the  presence  of  the  other. 

As  she  passed  hurriedly  over  the  dam 
she  observed  a  trap.  Igmu  shivered  as  she 
recognized  the  article,  and  on  a  closer 
examination  she  detected  the  hated  odor  of 
man.  She  caught  the  string  attached  to  it 
and  jerked  it  out  upon  dry  land,  thus  doing 
a  good  turn  to  her  neighbor  Sinteksa. 

This  discovery  fully  convinced  her  of  the 
danger  to  her  home  and  children.  ,She 
picked  her  way  through  the  deep  woods, 
occasionally  pausing  to  listen.  At  that  time 
of  the  day  no  people  talk  except  the  winged 
people,  and  they  were  joyous  as  she  passed 
through  the  timber.  She  heard  the  rushing 
of  a  water-fall  over  the  cliff,  now  vibrating 
louder,  now  fainter  as  she  listened.  Far 
beyond,  towards  the  wild  men's  camp,  she 
heard  the  barking  of  a  dog,  which  gave  her 
*a  peculiar  shiver  of  disgust. 
10 


The  Great    Cast's    Nursery 

A  secret  path  led  along  the  face  of  the  cliff, 
and  there  was  one  open  spot  which  she 
must  cross  to  get  to  her  den.  "Phur-r-r!" 
she  breathed,  and  dropped  to  the  ground. 
There  stood  one  of  the  dreaded  wild  men! 

No  sooner  had  she  put  her  head  out  of 
the  woods  than  his  quick  eye  caught  her. 
"  Igmutanka !"  he  exclaimed,  and  pulled 
one  of  the  winged  sticks  out  of  his  little 
bag. 

Igmu  was  surprised  for  once,  and  fear  al 
most  overcame  her.  The  danger  to  her  chil 
dren  and  the  possible  fate  of  her  mate  came 
into  her  mind  in  a  flash.  She  hesitated  for 
one  instant,  and  in  that  instant  she  felt  the 
sting  of  the  swift  arrow.  She  now  ran  for  her 
life,  and  in  another  moment  was  out  of  sight 
among  the  gray  ledges.  "Ugh!  I  got  her," 
muttered  the  Indian,  as  he  examined  the 
spot  where  she  had  stood. 

Igmu  never  stopped  until  she  reached  her 
den.  Her  wild  eyes  gleamed  as  she  paused 
at  the  entrance  to  ascertain  whether  any  one 
had  been  there  since  she  went  away.  When 
she  saw  and  smelled  that  her  home  had  not 
been  visited,  she  forgot  for  the  moment  all 
her  fright  and  pain.  Her  heart  beat  fast  with 
ii 


Red  Hunters    and   the  Animal  People 

joy — the  mother- joy.  Hastily  she  crawled 
into  the  dark  cave. 

"Yaw-aw-aw!"  was  the  mother's  greeting 
to  her  tawny  babes.  "Yaw-aw-aw!"  they 
replied  in  chorus.  She  immediately  laid  her 
self  down  in  the  farthest  corner  of  the  den 
facing  the  entrance  and  invited  her  babies 
to  come  and  partake  of  their  food.  Doubt 
less  she  was  considering  what  she  should  do 
when  the  little  ones  had  appeased  their  hun 
ger. 

Presently  the  bigger  baby  finished  his 
meal  and  began  to  claw  the  eyes  of  his 
brother.  The  latter  pulled  away,  smacking 
his  lips  and  blindly  showing  fight. 

"Hush!"  said  the  mother  Igmu.  "You 
must  be  good.  Lie  down  and  I  will  come 
back  soon." 

She  came  out  of  her  den,  still  carrying  the 
winged  stick  in  her  back.  It  was  only  a  skin 
wound.  She  got  hold  of  the  end  between  her 
teeth  and  with  one  jerk  she  pulled  it  out. 
The  blood  flowed  freely.  She  first  rolled 
upon  some  loose  earth  and  licked  the  wound 
thoroughly.  After  this  she  went  and  rubbed 
against  pine  pitch.  Again  she  licked  the 
pitch  off  from  her  fur;  and  having  applied 
12 


* 
The  Gre<xt   Cast's  Nursery 

all  the  remedies  known  to  her  family,  she  re- 
entered  the  cave. 

Igmu  had  decided  to  carry  her  helpless 
babes  to  a  den  she  knew  of  upon  Cedar 
Creek,  near  the  old  Eagle's  Nest — a  rough 
and  remote  spot  where  she  felt  sure  that  the 
wild  men  would  not  follow.  But  it  was  a 
long  way  to  travel,  and  she  could  carry  only 
one  at  a  time.  Meanwhile  the  hunters  and 
their  dogs  would  certainly  track  her  to  her 
den. 

In  her  own  mind  she  had  considered  the 
problem  and  hit  upon  an  expedient.  She 
took  the  smaller  kitten  by  the  skin  of  the 
back  and  hurried  with  it  to  her  neighbor 
Sinteksa's  place,  down  on  the  creek.  There 
were  some  old,  tumble-down  beaver  houses 
which  had  long  been  deserted.  Without 
ceremony  she  entered  one  of  these  and  made 
a  temporary  bed  for  her  babe.  Then  she 
went  back  to  her  old  home  for  the  last  time, 
took  the  other  kitten  in  her  mouth,  and  set 
out  on  her  night  journey  to  Cedar  Creek. 

It  was  now  dark.     Her  shortest  road  led 

her  near  the  camp  of  the  red  people ;  and  as 

she  knew  that  men  and  dogs  seldom  hunt  by 

night,  she  ventured  upon  this  way.     Fires 

13 


Red   Hunters   a.nd   the   AnimaJ    People 

were  blazing  in  the  camp  and  the  Red  men 
were  dancing  the  "coyote  dance."  It  was 
a  horrible  din!  Igmu  trembled  with  fear 
and  disgust  as  the  odor  of  man  came  to  her 
sensitive  nostrils.  It  seemed  to  her  at  this 
moment  that  Igtin  had  certainly  met  his 
death  at  the  hands  of  these  dreadful  people. 

She  trotted  on  as  fast  as  she  could  with 
her  load,  only  stopping  now  and  then  to  put 
it  down  and  lick  the  kitten's  back.  She 
laid  her  course  straight  over  the  divide,  down 
to  the  creek,  and  then  up  towards  its  source. 
Here,  in  a  wild  and  broken  land,  she  knew  of 
a  cavern  among  piled-up  rocks  that  she  in 
tended  to  make  her  own.  She  stopped  at  the 
concealed  threshold,  and,  after  satisfying  her 
self  that  it  was  just  as  she  had  left  it  several 
months  before,  she  prepared  a  bed  within 
for  her  baby,  and,  having  fed  him,  she  ad 
monished  him  to  be  quiet  and  left  him  alone. 
She  must  return  at  once  for  the  other  little 
cat. 

But  Igmu  had  gone  through  a  great  deal 
since  the  day  before.  It  was  now  almost 
morning,  and  she  was  in  need  of  food.  She 
remembered  the  cached  deer  on  the  Blacktail 
Creek,  and  set  out  at  once  in  that  direction. 
14 


The   Grea^t   Cost's  Nursery 

As  usual,  there  were  many  fresh  deer-tracks, 
which,  with  the  instinct  of  a  hunter,  she 
paused  to  examine,  half  inclined  to  follow 
them,  but  a  second  thought  apparently  im 
pelled  her  to  hurry  on  to  her  cache. 

The  day  had  now  dawned  and  things  ap 
peared  plain.  She  followed  the  creek -bed 
all  the  way  to  the  spot  where  she  had  killed 
her  deer  on  the  day  before.  As  she  neared 
it  her  hunger  became  more  and  more  irre 
sistible  ;  yet,  instead  of  rushing  upon  her  own, 
when  she  came  within  a  few  paces  of  it  she 
stopped  and  laid  herself  prone  upon  the 
earth,  according  to  the  custom  of  her  people. 
She  could  not  see  it,  for  it  was  hidden  in  a 
deep  gully,  the  old  bed  of  a  dry  stream.  As 
she  lay  there  she  switched  her  tail  slowly 
to  and  fro,  and  her  eyes  shot  yellow  fire. 

Suddenly  Igmu  flattened  out  like  a  sun- 
fish  and  began  to  whine  nervously.  Her 
eyes  became  two  flaming  globes  of  wrath  and 
consternation.  She  gradually  drew  her 
whole  body  into  a  tense  lump  of  muscles, 
ready  to  spring.  Her  lips  unconsciously 
contracted,  showing  a  set  of  fine  teeth — her 
weapons — while  the  very  ground  upon  which 
she  lay  was  deeply  scarred  by  those  other 
15 


R.ed   Hunters   a.nd    the    Animal    People 

weapons,  the  claws.  Eagerly  she  listened 
once  more — she  could  hear  the  cracking  of 
bones  under  strong  teeth. 

Her  blood  now  surged  beyond  all  discre 
tion  and  control.  She  thought  of  nothing 
but  that  the  thief,  whoever  he  might  be, 
must  feel  the  punishment  due  to  his  trespass. 
Two  long  springs,  and  she  was  on  top  of  a 
wicked  and  huge  grizzly,  who  was  feasting  on 
Igmutanka's  cached  deer!  He  had  finished 
most  of  the  tender  meat,  and  had  begun  to 
clean  his  teeth  by  chewing  some  of  the  car 
tilaginous  bones  when  the  attack  came. 

"  Waw-waw-waw-waaw !"  yelled  the  old 
root-digger,  and  threw  his  immense  left  arm 
over  his  shoulder  in  an  effort  to  seize  his 
assailant.  At  the  same  time  her  weight  and 
the  force  of  her  attack  knocked  him  com 
pletely  over  and  rolled  him  upon  the  sandy 
ground. 

Igmu  saw  her  chance  and  did  not  forget 
the  usage  of  her  people  in  a  fight  with  his. 
She  quickly  sprang  aside  when  she  found 
that  she  could  not  hold  her  position,  and 
there  was  danger  of  Mato  slashing  her  side 
with  either  paw.  She  purposely  threw  her 
self  upon  her  back,  which  position  must  have 
16 


The   Greevt   Cast's  Nursery 

been  pleasing  to  Mato,  for  he  rushed  upon 
her  with  all  the  confidence  in  the  world,  being 
ignorant  of  the  trick. 

It  was  not  long  before  the  old  bear  was 
forced  to  growl  and  howl  unmercifully.  He 
found  that  he  could  neither  get  in  his  best 
fight  for  himself  nor  get  away  from  such 
a  deadly  and  wily  foe.  He  had  hoped  to 
chew  her  up  in  two  winks,  but  this  was  a 
fatal  mistake.  She  had  sprung  from  the 
ground  under  him  and  had  hugged  him  tight 
by  burying  the  immense  claws  of  her  fore- 
paws  in  his  hump,  while  her  hind  claws  tore 
his  loins  and  entrails.  Thus  he  was  left 
only  his  teeth  to  fight  with;  but  even  this 
was  impossible,  for  she  had  pulled  herself 
up  close  to  his  neck. 

When  Mato  discovered  his  error  he  strug 
gled  desperately  to  get  away,  but  his  as 
sailant  would  not  let  go  her  vantage- 
hold. 

"  Waw-waw-waw !"  yelled  the  great  boast 
ful  Mato  once  more,  but  this  time  the  tone 
was  that  of  weakness  and  defeat.  It  was  a 
cry  of  "Murder!  murder!  Help!  help!" 

At  last  Igmutanka  sprang  aside,  apparent 
ly  to  see  how  near  dead  the  thief  might  be, 


Red  Hunters  a.nd  the  Animal  People 

and  stood  lashing  her  long,  snaky  tail  in 
dignantly. 

"  Waw  -  waw,  yaw  -  waw!"  moaned  and 
groaned  the  grizzly,  as  he  dragged  himself 
away  from  the  scene  of  the  encounter.  His 
wounds  were  deadly  and  ugly.  He  lay 
down  within  sight  of  the  spot,  for  he  could 
go  no  farther.  He  moaned  and  groaned 
more  and  more  faintly;  then  he  was  silent. 
The  great  fighter  and  victor  in  many  battles 
is  dead! 

Five  paces  from  the  remains  of  the  cached 
deer  the  victor,  lying  in  the  shade  of  an  im 
mense  pine,  rested  and  licked  her  blood- 
soaked  hair.  She  had  received  many  ugly 
gashes,  but  none  of  them  necessarily  mortal. 
Again  she  applied  her  soil  and  pitch-pine 
remedy  and  stopped  the  hemorrhage.  Hav 
ing  done  this,  she  realized  that  she  was  still 
very  hungry ;  but  Igmu  could  not  under  any 
circumstances  eat  of  the  meat  left  and  pol 
luted  by  the  thief.  She  could  not  break  the 
custom  of  her  people. 

So  she  went  across  from  Blacktail  to  the 

nearest  point  upon  Bear-runs-in-the-Lodge, 

her  former  home,  hoping  to  find  some  game 

on   the  way.     As   she  followed   the  ravine 

18 


The   Grea.t   Cat's  Nursery 

leading  from  the  creek  of  her  fight  she  came 
upon  a  doe  and  fawn.  She  crouched  down 
and  crawled  up  close  to  them,  then  jumped 
upon  the  fawn.  The  luscious  meat — she  had 
all  she  wanted! 

The  day  was  now  well  advanced,  and  the 
harassed  mother  was  growing  impatient  to 
reach  the  babe  which  she  had  left  in  one  of 
the  abandoned  homes  of  Mrs.  Bobtail  Beaver. 
The  trip  over  the  divide  between  Blacktail 
and  Bear-runs  was  quickly  made.  Fear, 
loneliness,  and  anxiety  preyed  upon  her 
mind,  and  her  body  was  weakened  by  loss 
of  blood  and  severe  exertion.  She  dwelt 
continually  on  her  two  babes,  so  far  apart, 
and  her  dread  lest  the  wild  men  should  get 
one  or  both  of  them. 

If  Igmu  had  only  known  it,  but  one  kitten 
was  left  to  her  at  that  moment!  She  had 
not  left  the  cave  on  Cedar  Creek  more  than 
a  few  minutes  when  her  own  cousin,  whom 
she  had  never  seen  and  who  lived  near  the 
Eagle's  Nest  upon  the  same  creek,  came  out 
for  a  hunt.  She  intercepted  her  track  and 
followed  it. 

When  she  got  to  the  den  it  was  clear  to 
Nakpaksa-  (Torn  Ear)  that  this  was  not  a 


Red   Hunters   a.nd   the   Ar\imaJ   People 

regular  home,  so  that  she  had  a  right  to  enter 
and  investigate.  To  her  surprise  she  found  a 
little  Igmutanka  baby,  and  he  cried  when 
he  saw  her  and  seemed  to  be  hungry.  He 
was  the  age  of  her  own  baby  which  she  had 
left  not  long  before,  and  upon  second  thought 
she  was  not  sure  but  that  he  was  her  own 
and  that  he  had  been  stolen.  He  had  evi 
dently  not  been  there  long,  and  there  was  no 
one  near  to  claim  him.  So  she  took  him 
home  with  her.  There  she  found  her  own 
kitten  safe  and  glad  to  have  a  playmate,  and 
Nakpaksa  decided,  untroubled  by  any  pangs 
of  conscience,  to  keep  him  and  bring  him  up 
as  her  own. 

It  is  clear  that  had  Igmu  returned  and 
missed  her  baby  there  would  have  been 
trouble  in  the  family.  But,  as  the  event 
proved,  the  cousin  had  really  done  a  good 
deed. 

It  was  sad  but  unavoidable  that  Igmu 
should  pass  near  her  old  home  in  returning 
for  the  other  kitten.  When  she  crawled 
along  the  rocky  ledge,  in  full  view  of  the  den, 
she  wanted  to  stop.  Yet  she  could  not  re- 
enter  the  home  from  which  she  had  been 
forced  to  flee.  It  was  not  the  custom  of  her 
20 


The  Great  Ca.t's  Nursery 

people  to  do  so.  The  home  which  they  va 
cate  by  chance  they  may  re-enter  and  even 
re-occupy,  but  never  the  home  which  they 
are  forced  to  leave.  There  are  evil  spirits 
there !  \ 

Hurt  and  wearied,  yet  with  courage  un 
shaken,  the  poor  savage  mother  glided  along 
the  stream.  She  saw  Mrs.  Bobtail  and  her 
old  man  cutting  wood  dangerously  far  from 
the  water,  but  she  could  not  stop  and  warn 
them  because  she  had  borrowed  one  of  their 
deserted  houses  without  their  permission. 

"Mur-r-r-r!"  What  is  this  she  hears? 
It  is  the  voice  of  the  wild  men's  coyotes!  It 
comes  from  the  direction  of  the  kitten's 
hiding-place.  Off  she  went,  only  pausing 
once  or  twice  to  listen;  but  it  became  more 
and  more  clear  that  there  was  yelling  of  the 
wild  men  as  well. 

She  now  ran  along  the  high  ledges,  con 
cealing  herself  behind  trees  and  rocks,  until 
she  came  to  a  point  from  which  she  could 
overlook  the  scene.  Quickly  and  stealthily 
she  climbed  a  large  pine.  Behold,  the  little 
Igmu  was  up  a  small  willow- tree!  Three 
Indians  were  trying  to  shake  him  down,  and 
their  dogs  were  hilarious  over  the  fun. 
21 


R.ed  Hunters  a.nd  the  AnimeJ  People 

Her  eyes  flamed  once  more  with  wrath  and 
rebellion  against  injustice.  Could  neither 
man  nor  beast  respect  her  rights?  It  was 
horrible!  Down  she  came,  and  with  swift 
and  cautious  step  advanced  within  a  very 
few  paces  of  the  tree  before  man  or  beast 
suspected  her  approach. 

Just  then  they  shook  the  tree  vigorously, 
while  the  poor  little  Igmu,  clinging  to  the 
bough,  yelled  out  pitifully,  "Waw,  waw, 
waw!" 

Mother-love  and  madness  now  raged  in  her 
bosom.  She  could  not  be  quiet  any  longer! 
One  or  two  long  springs  brought  her  to  the 
tree.  The  black  coyotes  and  the  wild  men 
were  surprised  and  fled  for  their  lives. 

Igmu  seized  and  tore  the  side  of  one  of  the 
men,  and  threw  a  dog  against  the  rocks  with 
a  broken  leg.  Then  in  lightning  fashion  she 
ran  up  the  tree  to  rescue  her  kitten,  and 
sprang  to  the  ground,  carrying  it  in  her  teeth. 
As  the  terrified  hunters  scattered  from  the 
tree,  she  chose  the  path  along  the  creek  bot 
tom  for  her  flight. 

Just  as  she  thought  she  had  cleared  the 
danger-point  a  wild  man  appeared  upon  the 
bank  overhead  and,  quick  as  a  flash,  sent  one 
22 


The    Gre<xt    Cast's   Nursery 

of  those  winged  willows.  She  felt  a  sharp 
pang  in  her  side — a  faintness — she  could  not 
run!  The  little  Igmu  for  whom  she  had 
made  such  a  noble  fight  dropped  from  her 
mouth.  She  staggered  towards  the  bank, 
but  her  strength  refused  her,  so  she  lay  down 
beside  a  large  rock.  The  baby  came  to  her 
immediately,  for  he  had  not  had  any  milk 
since  the  day  before.  She  gave  one  gentle 
lick  to  his  woolly  head  before  she  dropped 
her  own  and  died. 

"Woo,  woo!  Igmutanka  ye  lo!  Woo, 
woo!"  the  shout  of  triumph  resounded  from 
the  cliffs  of  Bear-runs-in-the-Lodge.  The 
successful  hunter  took  home  with  him  the 
last  of  the  Igmu  family,  the  little  orphaned 
kitten. 


On  Wolf  Mountain 


ON  the  eastern  slope  of  the  Big  Horn 
Mountains,  the  Mayala  clan  of  gray 
wolves,  they  of  the  Steep  Places,  were  follow 
ing  on  the  trail  of  a  herd  of  elk.  It  was  a  day 
in  late  autumn.  The  sun  had  appeared 
for  an  instant,  and  then  passed  behind  a 
bank  of  cold  cloud.  Big  flakes  of  snow  were 
coming  down,  as  the  lean,  gray  hunters 
threaded  a  long  ravine,  cautiously  stopping 
at  every  knoll  or  divide  to  survey  the  outlook 
before  continuing  their  uncertain  pursuit. 

The  large  Mayala  wolf  with  his  mate  and 
their  five  full-grown  pups  had  been  driven 
away  from  their  den  on  account  of  their 
depredations  upon  the  only  paleface  in  the 
Big  Horn  valley.  It  is  true  that,  from  their 
stand -point,  he  had  no  right  to  encroach  upon 
their  hunting-grounds. 

For  three  days  they  had  been  trailing  over 
24 


On  Wolf  Mountain 

the  Big  Horn  Mountains,  moving  southeast 
towards  Tongue  River,  where  they  believed 
that  no  man  would  come  to  disturb  them. 
They  had  passed  through  a  country  full  of 
game,  but,  being  conscious  of  the  pursuit  of 
the  sheepman  and  his  party  on  their  trail, 
they  had  not  ventured  to  make  an  open 
hunt,  nor  were  they  stopping  anywhere  long 
enough  to  seek  big  game  with  success.  Only 
an  occasional  rabbit  or  grouse  had  furnished 
them  with  a  scanty  meal. 

From  the  Black  Canon,  the  outlet  of  the 
Big  Horn  River,  there  unfolds  a  beautiful 
valley.  Here  the  wild  man's  ponies  were 
scattered  all  along  the  river-bottoms.  In  a 
sheltered  spot  his  egg-shaped  teepees  were 
ranged  in  circular  form.  The  Mayala  family 
deliberately  sat  upon  their  haunches  at  the 
head  of  the  canon  and  watched  the  people 
moving,  antlike,  among  the  lodges. 

Manitoo,  the  largest  of  the  five  pups,  was  a 
famous  runner  and  hunter  already.  He 
whimpered  at  sight  of  the  frail  homes  of  the 
wild  man,  and  would  fain  have  gotten  to  the 
gulches  again. 

The  old  wolf  rebuked  his  timidity  with  a 
low  growl.  He  had  hunted  many  a  time 
3  25 


R~ed   Hunters  and   the   Animal   People 

with  one  of  these  Red  hunters  as  guide  and 
companion.  More  than  this,  he  knew  that 
they  often  kill  many  buffalo  and  elk  in  one 
hunting,  and  leave  much  meat  upon  the 
plains  for  the  wolf  people.  They  respect  his 
medicine  and  he  respects  theirs.  It  is  quite 
another  kind  of  man  who  is  their  enemy. 

Plainly  there  was  an  unusual  commotion 
in  the  Sioux  village.  Ponies  were  brought 
in,  and  presently  all  the  men  rode  out  in  a 
southerly  direction. 

"Woo-o-o!"  was  the  long  howl  of  the  old 
wolf.  It  sounded  almost  like  a  cry  of  joy. 

"  It  is  the  buffalo-hunt!  We  must  run  to 
the  south  and  watch  until  the  hunt  is  ended." 

Away  they  went,  travelling  in  pairs  and  at 
some  distance  apart,  for  the  sake  of  better 
precaution.  On  the  south  side  of  the  moun 
tain  they  stood  in  a  row,  watching  hungrily 
the  hunt  of  the  Red  men. 

There  was,  indeed,  a  great  herd  of  buffalo 
grazing  upon  the  river  plain  surrounded  by 
foot-hills.  The  hunters  showed  their  heads 
on  three  sides  of  the  herd,  the  fourth  side 
rising  abruptly  to  the  sheer  ascent  of  the 
mountain. 

Now  there  arose  in  the  distance  a  hoarse 
26 


On  Wolf  Mountain 

shout  from  hundreds  of  throats  in  unison. 
The  trained  ponies  of  the  Indians  charged 
upon  the  herd,  just  as  the  wolves  them 
selves  had  sometimes  banded  together  for 
the  attack  in  better  days  of  their  people. 
It  was  not  greatly  different  from  the  first 
onset  upon  the  enemy  in  battle.  Yelling 
and  brandishing  their  weapons,  the  Sioux 
converged  upon  the  unsuspecting  buffalo, 
who  fled  blindly  in  the  only  direction  open 
to  them  —  straight  toward  the  inaccessible 
steep ! 

In  a  breath,  men  and  shaggy  beasts  were 
mixed  in  struggling  confusion.  Many  ar 
rows  sped  to  their  mark  and  dead  buffalo 
lay  scattered  over  the  plain  like  big,  black 
mounds,  while  the  panic-stricken  survivors 
fled  down  the  valley  of  the  Big  Horn.  In  a 
little  while  the  successful  hunters  departed 
with  as  much  meat  as  their  ponies  could 
carry. 

No  sooner  were  they  out  of  sight  than  the 
old  wolf  gave  a  feast-call.  "  Woo-o-o!  woo, 
woo,  woo!"  He  was  sure  that  they  had  left 
enough  meat  for  all  the  wolf  people  within 
hearing  distance.  Then  away  they  all  went 
for  the  hunting-ground — not  in  regular  order, 
27 


R.ed  Hunters   a.nd  the  Anima.1  People 

as  before,  but  each  one  running  at  his  best 
speed.  They  had  not  gone  far  down  the 
slope  before  they  saw  others  coming  from 
other  hills  —  their  gray  tribesmen  of  the 
rocks  and  plains. 

The  Mayala  family  came  first  to  two  large 
cows  killed  near  together.  There  is  no  doubt 
that  they  were  hungry,  but  the  smell  of 
man  offends  all  of  the  animal  kind.  They 
had  to  pause  at  a  distance  of  a  few  paces,  as 
if  to  make  sure  that  there  wrould  be  no  trick 
played  on  them.  The  old  Mayala  chief 
knew  that  the  man  with  hair  on  his  face  has 
many  tricks.  He  has  a  black,  iron  ring  that 
is  hidden  under  earth  or  snow  to  entrap  the 
wolf  people,  and  sometimes  he  puts  medicine 
on  the  meat  that  tortures  and  kills  them. 
Although  they  had  seen  these  buffalo  fall 
before .  their  brothers,  the  wild  Red  men, 
they  instinctively  hesitated  before  taking  the 
meat.  But  in  the  mean  time  there  were 
others  who  came  very  hungry  and  who  were, 
apparently,  less  scrupulous,  for  they  im 
mediately  took  hold  of  it,  so  that  the  Mayala 
people  had  to  hurry  to  get  their  share. 

In  a  short  time  all  the  meat  left  from  the 
wild  men's  hunt  had  disappeared,  and  the 
28 


On   Wolf  Mountain 

wolves  began  grinding  the  soft  and  spongy 
portions  of  the  bones.  The  old  ones  were 
satisfied  and  lay  down,  while  the  young  ones, 
like  young  folks  of  any  race,  sat  up  pertly 
and  gossipped  or  squabbled  until  it  was  time 
to  go  home. 

Suddenly  they  all  heard  a  distant  call  —a 
gathering  call.  "  Woo-oo-oo!"  After  a  few 
minutes  it  came  again.  Every  gray  wolf 
within  hearing  obeyed  the  summons  without 
hesitation. 

Away  up  in  the  secret  recesses  of  the  Big 
Horn  Mountains  they  all  came  by  tens  and 
hundreds  to  the  war-meeting  of  the  wolves. 
The  Mayala  chief  and  his  young  warriors 
arrived  at  the  spot  in  good  season.  Manitoo 
was  eager  to  know  the  reason  of  this  great 
council.  He  was  young,  and  had  never  be 
fore  seen  such  a  gathering  of  his  people. 

A  gaunt  old  wolf,  with  only  one  eye  and 
an  immensely  long  nose,  occupied  the  place 
of  honor.  No  human  ear  heard  the  speech 
of  the  chieftain,  but  we  can  guess  what  he 
had  to  say.  Doubtless  he  spoke  in  defence 
of  his  country,  the  home  of  his  race  and  that 
of  the  Red  man,  whom  he  regarded  with  tol 
eration.  It  was  altogether  different  with 
29 


R_ed   Hunters  and  the  AnimaJ   People 

that  hairy-faced  man  who  had  lately  come 
among  them  to  lay  waste  the  forests  and 
tear  up  the  very  earth  about  his  dwelling, 
while  his  creatures  devoured  the  herbage  of 
the  plain.  It  would  not  be  strange  if  war 
were  declared  upon  the  intruder. 

"Woo!  woo!  woo!"  The  word  of  assent 
came  forth  from  the  throats  of  all  who  heard 
the  command  at  that  wild  council  among  the 
piled-up  rocks,  in  the  shivering  dusk  of  a 
November  evening. 

The  northeast  wind  came  with  a  vengeance 
—  every  gust  swayed  and  bent  even  the 
mighty  pines  of  the  mountains.  Soon  the 
land  became  white  with  snow.  The  air  was 
full  of  biting  cold,  and  there  was  an  awful- 
ness  about  the  night. 

The  sheepman  at  his  lonely  ranch  had  little 
warning  of  the  storm,  and  he  did  not  get  half 
of  his  cows  in  the  corral.  As  for  the  sheep, 
he  had  already  rounded  them  up  before 
the  blizzard  set  in. 

"My  steers,   I  reckon,   '11  find  plenty  of 

warm  places  for  shelter,"  he  remarked  to 

his  man.     "  I  kinder  expect  that  some  of  my 

cows  11  suffer ;  but  the  worst  of  it  is  the  wolves 

30 


On   Wolf  Mountain 

— confound  them !  The  brutes  been  howling 
last  night  and  again  this  evenin'  from  pretty 
nigh  every  hill-top.  They  do  say,  too,  as 
that's  a  sure  sign  of  storm!" 

The  long  log-cabin  creaked  dismally  under 
the  blast,  and  the  windward  windows  were 
soon  coated  with  snow. 

"What's  that,  Jake?  Sounds  like  a  lamb 
bleating,"  the  worried  rancher  continued. 

Jake  forcibly  pushed  open  the  rude  door 
and  listened  attentively. 

"There  is  some  trouble  at  the  sheep-sheds, 
but  I  can't  tell  just  what  'tis.  May  be  only 
the  wind  rattling  the  loose  boards,"  he  sug 
gested,  uncertainly. 

"I  expect  a  grizzly  has  got  in  among  the 
sheep,  but  I'll  show  him  that  he  is  at  the 
wrong  door,"  exclaimed  Hank  Simmons, 
with  grim  determination.  "Get  your  rifle, 
Jake,  and  we'll  teach  whoever  or  whatever 
it  may  be  that  we  are  able  to  take  care  of  our 
stock  in  night  and  storm  as  well  as  in  fair 
weather!" 

He  pushed  the  door  open  and  gazed  out 
into  the  darkness  in  his  turn,  but  he  could 
not  see  a  foot  over  the  threshold.  A  terrific 
gust  of  wind  carried  a  pall  of  snow  into  the 


R.ed  Hunters  a.nd  the   Animal  People 

farthest  corner  of  the  cabin.  But  Hank 
was  a  determined  fellow,  and  not  afraid  of 
hardship.  He  would  spend  a  night  in  the 
sod  stable  to  watch  the  coming  of  a  calf, 
rather  than  run  even  a  small  chance  of  losing 
it. 

Both  men  got  into  their  cowhide  over 
coats  and  pulled  their  caps  well  down  over 
their  ears.  Rifle  in  hand,  they  proceeded 
towards  the  sheep-corral  in  single  file,  Jake 
carrying  the  lantern.  The  lambs  were  bleat 
ing  frantically,  and  as  they  approached  the 
premises  they  discovered  that  most  of  the 
sheep  were  outside. 

"Keep  your  finger  on  the  trigger,  Jake! 
All  the  wolves  in  the  Big  Horn  Mountains 
are  here!"  exclaimed  Hank,  who  was  a  few 
paces  in  advance. 

Had  they  been  inexperienced  men  —  but 
they  were  not.  They  were  both  men  of 
nerve.  "Bang!  bang!"  came  from  two 
rifles,  through  the  frosty  air  and  blinding 
snow. 

But  the  voice  of  the  guns  did  not  have  the 

demoralizing   effect   upon   which  'they  had 

counted.     Their    assailants    scarcely    heard 

the  reports  for  the  roar  of  the  storm.     Un- 

32 


On  Wolf  Mountain 

daunted  by  the  dim  glow  of  the  lantern, 
they  banded  together  for  a  fresh  attack. 
The  growling,  snarling,  and  gnashing  of 
teeth  of  hundreds  of  great  gray  wolves  at 
close  quarters  were  enough  to  dismay  even 
Hank  Simmons,  who  had  seen  more  than 
one  Indian  fight  and  hair-breadth  advent 
ure. 

"Bang!  bang!"  they  kept  on  firing  off 
their  pieces,  now  and  then  swinging  the  guns 
in  front  of  them  to  stay  the  mad  rush  of  the 
wild  army.  The  lantern  -  light  revealed  the 
glitter  of  a  hundred  pairs  of  fierce  eyes  and 
shining  rows  of  pointed  teeth. 

Hank  noticed  a  lean,  gray  wolf  with  one 
eye  and  an  immense  head  who  was  fore 
most  in  the  attack.  Almost  abreast  of  him 
was  a  young  wolf,  whose  great  size  and 
bristling  hair  gave  him  an  air  of  ferocity. 

"  Hold  hard,  Jake,  or  they'll  pick  our  bones 
yet!"  Hank  exclaimed,  and  the  pair  began  to 
retreat.  They  found  it  all  they  could  do  to 
keep  off  the  wolves,  and  the  faithful  collie 
who  had  fought  beside  them  was  caught 
and  dragged  into  darkness.  At  last  Hank 
pushed  the  door  open  and  both  men  tum 
bled  backward  into  the  cabin. 
33 


Red   Hunters  a.nd  the   Animal  People 

"Shoot!  shoot!  They  have  got  me!" 
yelled  Jake.  The  other  snatched  a  blazing 
ember  from  the  mud  chimney  and  struck  the 
leading  wolf  dead  partly  within  the  hut. 

"Gol  darn  them!"  ejaculated  Jake,  as  he 
scrambled  to  his  feet.  "That  young  w^olf  is 
a  good  one  for  fighting — he  almost  jerked 
my  right  leg  off!" 

"  Well,  I'll  be  darned,  Jake,  if  they  haven't 
taken  one  of  your  boots  for  a  trophy,"  Hank 
remarked,  as  he  wiped  the  sweat  from  his 
brows,  after  kicking  out  the  dead  wolf  and 
securely  barring  the  door.  "This  is  the 
closest  call  I've  had  yet!  I  calculate  to 
stand  off  the  Injuns  most  any  time,  but  these 
here  wolves  have  no  respect  for  my  good 
rifle!" 

Wazeyah,  the  god  of  storm,  and  the  wild 
mob  reigned  outside  the  cabin,  while  the 
two  pioneer  stockmen  barricaded  themselves 
within,  and  with  many  curses  left  the  sheep 
to  their  fate. 

The  attack  had  stampeded  the  flock  so 
that  they  broke  through  the  corral.  What 
the  assailants  did  not  kill  the  storm  de 
stroyed.  On  the  plateau  in  front  of  Ma- 
yaska  the  wolves  gathered,  bringing  lambs, 
34 


On  Wolf  Mountain 

and  here  Manitoo  put  down  Jake's  heavy 
cowhide  boot,  for  it  was  he  who  fought  side 
by  side  with  the  one-eyed  leader. 

He  was  immediately  surrounded  by  the 
others,  who  examined  what  he  had  brought. 
It  was  clear  that  Manitoo  had  distinguished 
himself,  for  he  had  stood  by  the  leader  until 
he  fell,  and  secured,  besides,  the  only  trophy 
of  the  fight. 

Now  they  all  gave  the  last  war-cry  to 
gether.  It  was  the  greatest  wolf-cry  that 
had  been  heard  for  many  years  upon  those 
mountains.  Before  daybreak,  according  to 
custom,  the  clans  separated,  believing  that 
they  had  effectually  destroyed  the  business 
of  the  hairy-faced  intruder,  and  expecting  by 
instant  flight  to  elude  his  vengeance. 

On  the  day  before  the  attack  upon  the 
ranch,  an  Indian  from  the  camp  in  the  valley 
had  been  appointed  to  scout  the  mountains 
for  game.  He  was  a  daring  scout,  and  was 
already  far  up  the  side  of  the  peak  which 
overhung  the  Black  Canon  when  he  noticed 
the  air  growing  heavy  and  turned  his  pony's 
head  towards  camp.  He  urged  him  on,  but 
the  pony  was  tired,  and,  suddenly,  a  blinding 
35 


R.ed  Hunters  and  the   Anima.1  People 

storm  came  sweeping  over  the  mountain 
side. 

The  Indian  did  not  attempt  to  guide  his 
intelligent  beast.  He  merely  fastened  the 
lariat  securely  to  his  saddle  and  followed 
behind  on  foot,  holding  to  the  animars  tail. 
He  could  not  see,  but  soon  he  felt  the  pony 
lead  him  down  a  hill.  At  the  bottom  it  was 
warm,  and  the  wind  did  not  blow  much  there. 
The  Indian  took  the  saddle  off  and  placed  it 
in  a  wash-out  which  was  almost  dry.  He 
wrapped  himself  in  his  blanket  and  lay  down. 
For  a  long  time  he  could  feel  and  hear  the 
foot-falls  of  his  pony  just  above  him,  but  at 
last  he  fell  asleep. 

In  the  morning  the  sun  shone  and  the 
wind  had  subsided.  The  scout  started  for 
camp,  knowing  only  the  general  direction, 
but  in  his  windings  he  came  by  accident  upon 
the  secret  place,  a  sort  of  natural  cave,  where 
the  wolves  had  held  their  war  meeting. 
The  signs  of  such  a  meeting  were  clear  to 
him,  and  explained  the  unusual  number  of 
wolf -tracks  which  he  had  noticed  in  this  re 
gion  on  the  day  before.  Farther  down  was 
the  plateau,  or  wopata,  where  he  found  the 
carcasses  of  many  sheep,  and  there  lay 

36 


Oil   Wolf   Mountain 

Jake's  boot  upon  the  bloody  and  trampled 
snow! 

When  he  reached  the  camp  and  reported 
these  signs  to  his  people,  they  received  the 
news  with  satisfaction. 

"The  paleface,"  said  they,  "has  no  rights 
in  this  region.  It  is  against  our  interest  to 
allow  him  to  come  here,  and  our  brother  of 
the  wandering  foot  well  knows  it  for  a  men 
ace  to  his  race.  He  has  declared  war  upon 
the  sheepman,  and  it  is  good.  Let  us  sing 
war-songs  for  the  success  of  our  brother!" 
The  Sioux  immediately  despatched  runners 
to  learn  the  exact  state  of  affairs  upon  Hank 
Simmons's  ranch. 

In  the  mean  time  the  ruined  sheepman 
had  made  his  way  to  the  nearest  army  post, 
which  stood  upon  a  level  plateau  in  front  of 
Hog's  Back  Mountain. 

"Hello,  Hank,  what's  the  matter  now?" 
quoth  the  sutler.  "You  look  uncommonly 
serious  this  morning.  Are  the  Injuns  on 
your  trail  again?" 

"No,  but  it's  worse  this  time.     The  gray 

wolves  of  the  Big  Horn  Mountains  attacked 

my  place  last  night  and  pretty  near  wiped  us 

out!     Every  sheep  is  dead.     They  even  car- 

37 


Red   Hunters    a.nd   the  AnimaJ   People 

ried  off  Jake  Hansen's  boot,  and  he  came 
within  one  of  being  eaten  alive.  We  used  up 
every  cartridge  in  our  belts,  and  the  bloody 
brutes  never  noticed  them  no  more  than  if 
they  were  pebbles!  I'm  afraid  the  post 
can't  help  me  this  time,"  he  concluded,  with 
a  deep  sigh. 

"Oh,  the  devil!  You  don't  mean  it," 
exclaimed  the  other.  "Well,  I  told  you  be 
fore  to  take  out  all  the  strychnine  you  could 
get  hold  of.  We  have  got  to  rid  the  country 
of  the  Injuns  and  gray  wolves  before  civili 
zation  will  stick  in  this  region!" 

Manitoo  had  lost  one  of  his  brothers  in 
the  great  fight,  and  another  was  badly  hurt. 
When  the  war-party  broke  up,  Manitoo 
lingered  behind  to  look  for  his  wounded 
brother.  For  the  first  day  or  two  he  would 
occasionally  meet  one  of  his  relations,  but 
as  the  clan  started  southeast  towards  Wolf 
Mountain,  he  was  left  far  behind. 

When  he  had  found  his  brother  lying  help 
less  a  little  way  from  the  last  gathering  of 
the  wolf  people,  he  licked  much  of  the  blood 
from  his  coat  and  urged  him  to  rise  and  seek 
a  safer  place.  The  wounded  gray  with  diffi- 

38 


On   Wolf  Mountain 

culty  got  upon  his  feet  and  followed  at  some 
distance,  so  that  in  case  of  danger  the  other 
could  give  the  signal  in  time. 

Manitoo  ran  nimbly  along  the  side  gulches 
until  he  found  a  small  cave.  "Here  you 
may  stay.  I  will  go  hunting,"  he  said,  as 
plain  as  signs  can  speak. 

It  was  not  difficult  to  find  meat,  and  a  part 
of  Hank's  mutton  was  brought  to  the  cave. 
In  the  morning  Manitoo  got  up  early  and 
stretched  himself.  His  brother  did  not  offer 
to  move.  At  last  he  made  a  feeble  motion 
with  his  head,  opened  his  eyes  and  looked 
directly  at  him  for  a  moment,  then  closed 
them  for  the  last  time.  A  tremor  passed 
through  the  body  of  the  warrior  gray,  and  he 
was  still.  Manitoo  touched  his  nose  gently, 
but  there  was  no  breath  there.  It  was  time 
for  him  to  go. 

When  he  came  out  of  the  death-cave  on 
Plum  Creek,  Manitoo  struck  out  at  once  for 
the  Wolf  Mountain  region.  His  instinct 
told  him  to  seek  a  refuge  as  far  as  possible 
from  the  place  of  death.  As  he  made  his 
way  over  the  divide  he  saw  no  recent  sign 
of  man  or  of  his  own  kinsfolk.  Nevertheless, 
he  had  lingered  too  long  for  safety.  The 
39 


R»ed    Hunters    and  the   AnimaJ   People 

soldiers  at  the  post  had  come  to  the  aid  of  the 
sheepman,  and  they  were  hot  on  his  trail. 
Perhaps  his  senses  were  less  alert  than  usual 
that  morning,  for  when  he  discovered  the 
truth  it  was  almost  too  late. 

A  long  line  of  hairy-faced  men,  riding  big 
horses  and  armed  with  rifles,  galloped  down 
the  valley. 

"There  goes  one  of  the  gray  devils!" 
shouted  a  corporal. 

In  another  breath  the  awful  weapons 
talked  over  his  head,  and  Manitoo  was  run 
ning  at  top  speed  through  a  hail  of  bullets. 
It  was  a  chase  to  kill,  and  for  him  a  run  for 
his  life.  His  only  chance  lay  in  reaching  the 
bad  places.  He  had  but  two  hundred  paces' 
start.  Men  and  dogs  were  gaining  on  him 
when  at  last  he  struck  a  deep  gulch.  He 
dodged  the  men  around  the  banks,  and  their 
dogs  were  not  experts  in  that  kind  of  coun- 
try. 

The  Sioux  runners  in  the  mean  time  had 
appeared  upon  a  neighboring  butte,  and  the 
soldiers,  taking  them  for  a  war-party,  had 
given  up  the  chase  and  returned  to  the  post. 
So,  perhaps,  after  all,  his  brothers,  the  wild 
hunters,  had  saved  Manitoo's  life. 
40 


On   Wolf  Mountain 

During  the  next  few  days  the  young  wolf 
proceeded  with  caution,  and  had  finally 
crossed  the  divide  without  meeting  either 
friend  or  foe.  He  was  now,  in  truth,  an  out 
cast  and  a  wanderer.  He  hunted  as  best  he 
could  with  very  little  success,  and  grew 
leaner  and  hungrier  than  he  had  ever  been 
before  in  his  life.  Winter  was  closing  in 
with  all  its  savage  rigor,  and  again  night  and 
storm  shut  down  over  Wolf  Mountain. 

The  tall  pines  on  the  hill-side  sighed  and 
moaned  as  a  new  gust  of  wind  swept  over 
them.  The  snow  came  faster  and  faster. 
Manitoo  had  now  and  again  to  change  his 
position,  where  he  stood  huddled  up  under  an 
overarching  cliff.  He  shook  and  shook  to 
free  himself  from  the  snow  and  icicles  that 
clung  to  his  long  hair. 

He  had  been  following  several  black-tail 
deer  into  a  gulch  when  the  storm  overtook 
him,  and  he  sought  out  a  spot  which  was 
somewhat  protected  from  the  wind.  It  was 
a  steep  place  facing  southward,  well  up  on 
the  side  of  Wolf  Mountain. 

Buffalo  were  plenty  then,  but  as  Manitoo 
was  alone  he  had  been  unable  to  get  meat. 
4  41 


R.ed   Hunters   a.i\d   the   Animal   People 

These  great  beasts  are  dangerous  fighters 
when  wounded,  and  unless  he  had  some  help 
it  would  be  risking  too  much  to  tackle  one 
openly.  A  band  of  wolves  will  attack  a 
herd  when  very  hungry,  but  as  the  buffalo 
then  make  a  fence  of  themselves,  the  bulls 
facing  outward,  and  keep  the  little  ones  in 
side,  it  is  only  by  tiring  them  out  and  stam 
peding  the  herd  that  it  is  possible  to  secure 
one. 

vStill  the  wind  blew  and  the  snow  fell  fast. 
The  pine-trees  looked  like  wild  men  wrapped 
in  their  robes,  and  the  larger  ones  might  have 
passed  for  their  cone-shaped  lodges.  Mani- 
too  did  not  feel  cold,  but  he  was  soon  covered 
so  completely  that  no  eye  of  any  of  the  wild 
tribes  of  that  region  could  have  distinguished 
him  from  a  snow-clad  rock  or  mound. 

It  is  true  that  no  good  hunter  of  his  tribe 
would  willingly  remain  idle  on  such  a  day  as 
that,  for  the  prey  is  weakest  and  most  easily 
conquered  on  a  stormy  day.  But  the  long 
journey  from  his  old  home  had  somewhat  dis 
heartened  Manitoo;  he  was  weak  from  lack 
of  food,  and,  more  than  all,  depressed  by  a 
sense  of  his  loneliness.  He  is  as  keen  for  the 
companionship  of  his  kind  as  his  brother  the 
42 


On  Wolf  Mountain 

Indian,  and  now  he  longed  with  a  great 
longing  for  a  sight  of  the  other  members  of 
the  Mayala  clan.  Still  he  stood  there  mo 
tionless,  only  now  and  then  sniffing  the 
unsteady  air,  with  the  hope  of  discovering 
some  passer-by. 

Suddenly  out  of  the  gray  fog  and  frost 
something  emerged.  Manitoo  was  hidden 
perfectly,  but  at  that  moment  he  detected 
with  joy  the  smell  of  one  of  his  own  people. 
He  sat  up  on  his  haunches  awaiting  the  new 
comer,  and  even  gave  a  playful  growl  by 
way  of  friendly  greeting. 

The  stranger  stopped  short  as  if  frozen  in 
her  tracks,  and  Manitoo  perceived  a  lovely 
maid  of  his  tribe,  robed  in  beautiful  white 
snow  over  her  gray  coat.  She  understood 
the  sign  language  of  the  handsome  young 
man,  with  as  nice  a  pair  of  eyes  as  she  had 
ever  seen  in  one  of  the  wolf  kind.  She  gave 
a  yelp  of  glad  surprise  and  sprang  aside  a 
pace  or  two. 

Manitoo  forgot  his  hunger  and  loneliness. 
He  forgot  even  the  hairy-faced  men  with  the 
talking  weapons.  He  lifted  his  splendid, 
bushy  tail  in  a  rollicking  manner  and  stepped 
up  to  her.  She  raised  her  beautiful  tail  co- 
43 


Red  Hunters  a^nd  the  Animal  People 

quettishly  and  again  leaped  sidewise  with 
affected  timidity. 

Manitoo  now  threw  his  head  back  to  sniff 
the  wind,  and  all  the  hair  of  his  back  rose  up 
in  a  perpendicular  brush.  Under  other  cir 
cumstances  this  would  be  construed  as  a  sign 
of  great  irritation,  but  this  time  it  indicated 
the  height  of  joy. 

The  wild  courtship  was  brief.  Soon  both 
were  satisfied  and  stood  face  to  face,  both 
with  plumy  tail  erect  and  cocked  head. 
Manitoo  teasingly  raised  one  of  his  fore- 
paws.  They  did  not  know  how  long  they 
stood  there,  and  no  one  else  can  tell.  The 
storm  troubled  them  not  at  all,  and  all  at 
once  they  discovered  that  the  sun  was  shin 
ing! 

If  any  had  chanced  to  be  near  the  An 
telope's  Leap  at  that  moment,  he  would  have 
seen  a  beautiful  sight.  The  cliff  formed  by 
the  abrupt  ending  of  a  little  gulch  was  laced 
with  stately  pines,  all  clad  in  a  heavy  gar 
ment  of  snow.  They  stood  like  shapes  of 
beauty  robed  in  white  and  jewels,  all  fired 
by  the  sudden  bursting  forth  of  the  after 
noon  sun. 

The  wolf  maiden  was  beautiful !  Her  robe 
44 


On   Wolf   Mountain 

was  fringed  with  icicles  which  shone  brilliant 
ly  as  she  stood  there  a  bride.  The  last  gust 
of  wind  was  like  the  distant  dying  away  of 
the  wedding  march,  and  the  murmuring 
pines  said  Amen. 

It  was  not  heard  by  human  ear,  but  ac 
cording  to  the  customs  of  the  gray  wolf  clan 
it  was  then  and  there  Manitoo  promised  to 
protect  and  hunt  for  his  mate  during  their 
lifetime. 


The  Dance  of  the  Little  People 


IN  full  view  of  Wetaota,  upon  an  open  ter 
race  half-way  up  the  side  of  the  hill  in 
the  midst  of  virgin  Big  Woods,  there  were 
grouped  in  an  irregular  circle  thirty  teepees 
of  the  Sioux.  The  yellowish  -  white  skin 
cones  contrasted  quite  naturally  with  the 
variegated  foliage  of  September,  yet  all  of 
the  woodland  people  knew  well  that  they  had 
not  been  there  on  the  day  before. 

Wetaota,  the  Lake  of  Many  Islands,  lies  at 
the  heart  of  Haya  Tanka,  the  Big  Mountain. 
It  is  the  chosen  home  of  many  wild  tribes. 
Here  the  crane,  the  Canadian  goose,  the  loon, 
and  other  water-fowl  come  annually  to  breed 
undisturbed.  The  moose  are  indeed  the 
great  folk  of  the  woods,  and  yet  there  are 
many  more  who  are  happily  paired  here,  and 
who  with  equal  right  may  claim  it  as  their 
domicile.  Among  them  are  some  insig- 
46 


The  Da,  nee    of    the  Little  People 

nificant  and  obscure,  perhaps  only  because 
they  have  little  or  nothing  to  contribute  to 
the  necessities  of  the  wild  man. 

Such  are  the  Little  People  of  the  Meadow, 
who  dwell  under  a  thatched  roof  of  coarse 
grasses.  Their  hidden  highways  and  cities 
are  found  near  the  lake  and  along  the  courses 
of  the  streams.  Here  they  have  toiled  and 
played  and  brought  forth  countless  genera 
tions,  and  few  can  tell  their  life-story. 

"Ho,  ho,  kola!"  was  the  shout  of  a  sturdy 
Indian  boy,  apparently  about  ten  years  old, 
from  his  post  in  front  of  the  camp  and  over 
looking  the  lake.  A  second  boy  was  coming 
towards  him  through  the  woods,  chanting 
aloud  a  hunting  song  after  the  fashion  of 
their  fathers.  The  men  had  long  since  de 
parted  on  the  hunt,  and  Teola,  who  loved 
to  explore  new  country,  had  already  made 
the  circuit  of  Wetaota.  He  had  walked  for 
miles  along  its  tortuous  sandy  shores,  and 
examined  the  signs  of  most  of  the  inhabitants. 

There  were  footprints  of  bears,  moose, 
deer,  wolves,  mink,  otter,  and  others.  The 
sight  of  them  had  rejoiced  the  young  hunt 
er's  heart,  but  he  knew  that  they  were  for 
47 


Red   Hunters  a.nd  the  AnimaJ  People 

his  elders.  The  woods  were  also  full  of 
squirrels,  rabbits,  and  the  smaller  winged 
tribes,  and  the  waters  alive  with  the  finny 
folk,  all  of  which  are  boys'  game.  Yet  it 
was  the  delicate  sign-language  of  the  He- 
tunkala,  the  Little  People  of  the  Meadow, 
which  had  aroused  the  enthusiasm  of  Teola, 
and  in  spite  of  himself  he  began  to  sing  the 
game  scout's  song,  when  Shungela  heard  and 
gave  him  greeting. 

"What  is  the  prospect  for  our  hunt  to 
day?"  called  Shungela,  as  soon  as  his  friend 
was  near  enough  to  speak. 

"Good!"  Teola  replied,  simply.  "It  is  a 
land  of  fatness.  I  have  looked  over  the 
shores  of  Wetaota,  and  I  think  this  is  the 
finest  country  I  have  ever  seen.  I  am  tired 
enough  of  prairie-dog  hunts  and  catching 
young  prairie-chickens,  but  there  is  every 
thing  here  that  we  can  chase,  kill,  or  eat." 

Shungela  at  once  circulated  the  good  game 
news  among  the  boys,  and  in  less  time  than 
it  takes  an  old  man  to  tell  a  story  all  the 
boys  of  the  camp  had  gathered  around  a  bon 
fire  in  the  woods. 

"You,  Teola,  tell  us  again  what  you  have 
seen,"  they  exclaimed,  in  chorus. 
48 


The  Da.nce  of  the   Little  People 

"I  saw  the  footprint  of  every  creature 
that  the  Great  Mystery  has  made !  We  can 
fish,  we  can  hunt  the  young  crane,  and  snare 
the  rabbit.  We  can  fool  the  owl  for  a  night- 
play,"  he  replied,  proudly. 

"Ho,  kola,  washtay!  Good  news!  good 
news!"  one  urchin  shouted.  Another  ran  up 
a  tree  like  a  squirrel  in  the  exuberance  of  his 
delight.  "  Heye,  heye,  he-e-e-e!"  sang  an 
other,  joyously. 

"  Most  of  all  in  number  are  the  Little  Peo 
ple  of  the  Meadow !  Countless  are  their  tiny 
footprints  on  the  sandy  shores  of  Wetaota! 
Very  many  are  their  nests  and  furrows  under 
the  heavy  grass  of  the  marshes!  Let  Shun- 
gela  be  the  leader  to-day  in  our  attack  upon 
the  villages  of  the  Little  People,"  suggested 
Teola,  in  whose  mischievous  black  eyes  and 
shaggy  mane  one  beheld  the  very  picture  of 
a  wild  rogue. 

"Ho,  ho,  hechetu!"  they  all  replied,  in 
chorus. 

"This  is  our  first  mouse-hunt  this  season, 
and  you  all  know  the  custom.  We  must 
first  make  our  tiny  bows  and  arrows,"  he 
said,  again. 

"Tosh,  tosh!     Of  course!"  said  they  all. 

49 


R.ed  Hunters  a.i\d  the   AnimoJ   People 

In  the  late  afternoon  the  sun  shone  warmly 
and  everything  was  still  in  the  woods,  but 
upon  the  lake  the  occasional  cry  of  the  loon 
was  heard.  At  some  distance  from  the  camp 
thirty  or  more  little  redskins  met  together  to 
organize  their  mimic  deer-hunt.  They  imi 
tated  closely  the  customs  and  manners  of 
their  elders  while  hunting  the  deer.  Shun- 
gela  gave  the  command,  and  all  the  boys 
advanced  abreast,  singing  their  hunting  song, 
until  they  reached  the  meadow-land. 

Here  the  leader  divided  them  into  two 
parties,  of  which  one  went  twenty  paces  in 
advance,  and  with  light  switches  raked  aside 
the  dead  grass,  exposing  a  net-work  of  trails. 
The  homes  of  the  Little  People  were  under 
ground,  and  the  doors  were  concealed  by 
last  year's  rank  vegetation.  While  they 
kneeled  ready  to  shoot  with  the  miniature 
bow  and  arrows  the  first  fugitives  that  might 
pass,  the  second  party  advanced  in  turn, 
giving  an  imitation  of  the  fox-call  to  scare 
the  timorous  Little  People.  These  soon  be 
came  bewildered,  missed  their  holes,  and  were 
shot  down  with  unerring  aim  as  they  fled 
along  their  furrow-like  paths. 

There  was  a  close  rivalry  among  the  boys 


The  Da,  nee  of  the  Little  People 

to  see  who  could  bring  down  the  largest  num 
ber  of  the  tiny  fugitives,  but  it  was  forbidden 
to  open  the  homes  or  kill  any  who  were  in 
hiding. 

In  a  few  minutes  the  mice  were  panic- 
stricken,  running  blindly  to  and  fro,  and  the 
excitement  became  general. 

" Yehe,  yehe!  There  goes  their  chief!  A 
white  mouse!"  exclaimed  one  of  the  boys. 

"Stop  shooting!"  came  the  imperative 
command  from  the  shaggy-haired  boy. 

"  It  is  a  good  sign  to  see  their  chief,  but  it 
is  a  very  bad  sign  if  we  kill  any  after  we  have 
seen  him,"  he  explained. 

"I  have  never  heard  that  this  is  so,"  de 
murred  Shungela,  unwilling  to  yield  his  au 
thority. 

"You  can  ask  your  grandmother  or  your 
grandfather  to-night,  and  you  will  find  that 
I  am  right,"  retorted  the  shaggy-haired 
one. 

"  Woo,  woo !"  they  called,  and  all  the  others 
came  running. 

"  How  many  of  you  saw  the  white  mouse  ?" 
Teola  asked. 

"I  saw  it!"  "I  too!"  "I  too!"  replied 
several. 


FLed   Hunters   a.nd   the   AnimaJ   People 

"  And  how  many  have  heard  that  to  see  the 
chief  of  the  mouse  people  brings  good  luck  if 
the  mice  are  spared  after  his  appearance, 
but  that  whoever  continues  to  kill  them  in 
vites  misfortune?" 

" I  have  heard  it!"  "And  I!"  "And  I!" 
The  replies  were  so  many  that  all  the  boys 
were  willing  to  concede  the  authenticity  of 
the  story,  and  the  hunt  was  stopped. 

"  Let  us  hear  the  mouse  legends  again  this 
evening.  My  grandfather  will  tell  them  to 
us,"  Teola  suggested,  and  not  a  boy  there 
but  was  ready  to  accept  the  invitation. 

Padanee  was  an  ordinary  looking  old  Ind 
ian,  except  that  he  had  a  really  extraordinary 
pair  of  eyes,  whose  searching  vision  it  seem 
ed  that  nothing  could  escape.  These  eyes  of 
his  were  well  supported  by  an  uncommonly 
good  memory.  His  dusky  and  furrowed 
countenance  was  lighted  as  by  an  inner  flame 
when  once  he  had  wound  the  buffalo-robe 
about  his  lean,  brown  limbs  and  entered  upon 
the  account  of  his  day's  experience  in  the 
chase,  or  prepared  to  relate  to  an  attentive 
circle  some  oft  -  repeated  tradition  of  his 
people. 

52 


The   Dixnce  of  the  Little  People 

"  Hun,  hun,  hay !"  The  old  savage  cleared 
his  throat.  A  crowd  of  bright-eyed  little 
urchins  had  slipped  quietly  into  his  lodge. 
"Teola  tells  me  that  you  had  all  set  out  to 
hunt  down  and  destroy  the  Little  People  of 
the  Meadow,  and  were  only  stopped  by  seeing 
their  chief  go  by.  I  want  to  tell  you  some 
thing  about  the  lives  of  these  little  creatures. 
We  know  that  they  are  food  for  foxes  and 
other  animals,  and  that  is  as  far  as  most  of 
us  think  upon  the  matter.  Yet  the  Great 
Mystery  must  have  had  some  purpose  in 
mind  when  He  made  them,  and  doubtless 
that  is  good  for  us  to  know." 

Padanee  was  considered  a  very  good  sav 
age  school-teacher,  and  he  easily  held  his 
audience. 

"When  you  make  mud  animals,"  he  con 
tinued,  "you  are  apt  to  vary  them  a  little, 
perhaps  for  fun  and  perhaps  only  by  acci 
dent.  It  is  so  with  the  Great  Mystery.  He 
seems  to  get  tired  of  making  all  the  animals 
alike,  for  in  every  tribe  there  are  differences. 

"Among  the  Hetunkala,  the  Little  People, 

there  are  several  different  bands.     Some  live 

in  one  place  and  build  towns  and  cities  like 

the  white  man.     Some  wander  much  over 

53 


R.ed   Hunters  a.nd  the   Animal   People 

forest  and  prairie,  like  our  own  people. 
These  are  very  small,  with  long  tails,  and 
they  are  great  jumpers.  They  are  the  thieves 
of  their  nation.  They  never  put  up  any 
food  of  their  own,  but  rob  the  store-houses 
of  other  tribes. 

''Then  there  is  the  bob  tailed  mouse  with 
white  breast.  He  is  very  much  like  the 
paleface — always  at  work.  He  cannot  pass 
by  a  field  of  the  wild  purple  beans  without 
stopping  to  dig  up  a  few  and  tasting  to  see 
if  they  are  of  the  right  sort.  These  make 
their  home  upon  the  low-lying  prairies,  and 
fill  their  holes  with  great  store  of  wild  beans 
and  edible  roots,  only  to  be  robbed  by  the 
gopher,  the  skunk,  the  badger,  who  not  only 
steal  from  them  but  often  kill  and  eat  the 
owner  as  well.  Our  old  women,  too,  some 
times  rob  them  of  their  wild  beans. 

"This  fellow  is  always  fat  and  well-fed, 
like  the  white  man.  He  is  a  harvester,  and 
his  full  store-houses  are  found  all  through 
the  bottom  lands." 

' '  Ho,  ho !  Washtay  lo !' '  the  boys  shouted. 
"Keep  on,  grandfather!" 

"Perhaps  you  have  heard,  perhaps  not," 
resumed  the  old  man.     "  But  it  is  the  truth. 
54 


The  DaLixce  of  the  Little  People 

These  little  folk  have  their  own  ways.  They 
have  their  plays  and  dances,  like  any  other 
nation." 

"  We  never  heard  it ;  or,  if  we  have,  we  can 
remember  it  better  if  you  will  tell  it  to  us 
again!"  declared  the  shaggy-haired  boy,  with 
enthusiasm. 

"Ho,  ho,  ho!"  they  all  exclaimed,  in 
chorus. 

"Each  full  moon,  the  smallest  of  the 
mouse  tribe,  he  of  the  very  sharp  nose  and 
long  tail,  holds  a  great  dance  in  an  open 
field,  or  on  a  sandy  shore,  or  upon  the  crusty 
snow.  The  dance  is  in  honor  of  those  who 
are  to  be  cast  down  from  the  sky  when  the 
nibbling  of  the  moon  begins;  for  these  He- 
tunkala  are  the  Moon-Nibblers." 

As  this  new  idea  dawned  upon  Padanee's 
listeners,  all  tightened  their  robes  around 
them  and  sat  up  eagerly. 

At  this  point  a  few  powerful  notes  of  a 
wild,  melodious  music  burst  spontaneously 
from  the  throat  of  the  old  teacher,  for  he  was 
wont  to  strike  up  a  song  as  a  sort  of  inter 
lude.  He  threw  his  massive  head  back,  and 
his  naked  chest  heaved  up  and  down  like  a 
bellows. 

55 


R-ed   Hunters    and   the    AnimaJ   People 

' '  One  of  you  must  dance  to  this  part,  for 
the  story  is  of  a  dance  and  feast!"  he  ex 
claimed,  as  he  began  the  second  stanza. 

Teola  instantly  slipped  out  of  his  buffalo- 
robe  and  stepped  into  the  centre  of  the 
circle,  where  he  danced  crouchingly  in  the 
firelight,  keeping  time  with  his  lithe  brown 
body  to  the  rhythm  of  the  legend-teller's 
song. 

"O-o-o-o!"  they  all  hooted  at  the  finish. 

"This  is  the  legend  of  the  Little  People  of 
the  MeadovJ.  Hear  ye!  hear  ye!"  said  Pa- 
danee. 

"Ho-o-o!"  was  the  instant  response  from 
the  throats  of  the  little  Red  men. 

"A  long  time  ago,  the  bear  made  a  medi 
cine  feast,  and  invited  the  medicine-men  (or 
priests)  of  all  the  tribes.  Of  each  he  asked 
one  question,  '  What  is  the  best  medicine  (or 
magic)  of  your  tribe  ?' 

"  All  told  except  the  little  mouse.  He  was 
pressed  for  an  answer,  but  replied,  'That  is 
my  secret.' 

"  Thereupon  the  bear  was  angry  and  jump 
ed  upon  the  mouse,  who  disappeared  in 
stantly.  The  big  medicine  -  man  blindly 
grabbed  a  handful  of  grass,  hoping  to  squeeze 

56 


The  Da.nce  of    the   Little  People 

him  to  death.  But  all  the  others  present 
laughed  and  said,  '  He  is  on  your  back !' 

"Then  the  bear  rolled  upon  the  ground, 
but  the  mouse  remained  uppermost. 

" '  Ha,  ha,  ha!'  laughed  all  the  other  medi 
cine-men.  'You  cannot  get  rid  of  him.' 

"Then  he  begged  them  to  knock  him  off, 
for  he  feared  the  mouse  might  run  into  his 
ear.  But  they  all  refused  to  interfere. 

"'Try  your  magic  on  him,'  said  they,  'for 
he  is  only  using  the  charm  that  was  given  him 
by  the  Great  Mystery.' 

"  So  the  bear  tried  all  his  magic,  but  with 
out  effect.  He  had  to  promise  the  little 
mouse  that,  if  he  would  only  jump  off  from 
his  body,  neither  he  nor  any  of  his  tribe  would 
ever  again  eat  any  of  the  Little  People. 

"Upon  this  the  mouse  jumped  off. 

"But  now  Hinhan,  the  owl,  caught  him 
between  his  awful  talons,  and  said: 

" '  You  must  tell  your  charm  to  these  peo 
ple,  or  I  will  put  my  charm  on  you!' 

"The  little  medicine-man  trembled,  and 
promised  that  he  would  if  the  owl  would  let 
him  go.  He  was  all  alone  and  in  their  power, 
so  at  last  he  told  it. 

'"None  of  our  medicine-men,'  he  began, 
5  57 


Fled  Hunters  a.r\d  the   AnimaJ   People 

*  dared  to  come  to  this  lodge.  I  alone  be 
lieved  that  you  would  treat  me  with  the  re 
spect  due  to  my  profession,  and  I  am  here/ 
Upon  this  they  all  looked  away,  for  they 
were  ashamed. 

" '  I  am  one  of  the  least  of  the  Little  Peo 
ple  of  the  Meadow,'  said  the  mouse.  'We 
were  once  a  favored  people,  for  we  were  born 
in  the  sky.  We  were  able  to  ride  the  round 
moon  as  it  rolls  along.  We  were  commis 
sioned  at  every  full  moon  to  nibble  off  the 
bright  surface  little  by  little,  until  all  was 
dark.  After  a  time  it  was  again  silvered 
over  by  the  Great  Mystery,  as  a  sign  to  the 
Earth  People. 

" '  It  happened  that  some  of  us  were  care 
less.  We  nibbled  deeper  than  we  ought,  and 
made  holes  in  the  moon.  For  this  we  were 
hurled  down  to  the  earth.  Many  of  us  were 
killed;  others  fell  upon  soft  ground  and 
lived.  We  do  not  know  how  to  work.  We 
can  only  nibble  other  people's  things  and 
cany  them  away  to  our  hiding-places.  For 
this  we  are  hated  by  all  creatures,  even  by 
the  working  mice  of  our  own  nation.  But 
we  still  retain  our  power  to  stay  upon  mov 
ing  bodies,  and  that  is  our  magic.' 
58 


The  Demce  of  the   Little  People 

" '  Ho,  ho,  ho !'  was  the  response  of  all  pres 
ent.  They  were  obliged  to  respond  thus, 
but  they  were  angry  with  the  little  mouse, 
because  he  had  shamed  them. 

"  It  was  therefore  decreed  in  that  medicine- 
lodge  that  all  the  animals  may  kill  the  He- 
tunkala  wherever  they  meet  them,  on  the 
pretext  that  they  do  not  belong  upon  earth. 
All  do  so  to  this  day  except  the  bear,  who  is 
obliged  to  keep  his  word." 

"  O-o-o-o!"  shouted  the  shaggy-haired  boy, 
who  was  rather  a  careless  sort  in  his  manners, 
for  one  should  never  interrupt  a  story 
teller. 

"  It  is  almost  full  moon  now,  grandfather," 
he  continued,  "and  there  are  nice,  open, 
sandy  places  on  the  shore  near  the  mouse 
villages.  Do  you  think  we  might  see  them 
dancing  if  we  should  watch  to-night?" 

"Ho,  takoja!  Yes,  my  grandson,"  sim 
ply  replied  the  old  man. 

The  sand-bar  in  front  of  the  Indian  camp 
was  at  some  little  distance,  out  of  hearing 
of  the  occasional  loud  laughter  and  singing 
of  the  people.  Wetaota  was  studded  with 
myriads  of  jewel-like  sparkles.  On  the  shad- 
59 


R.ed  Hunters  and  the   Animal   People 

owy  borders  of  the  lake,  tall  trees  bodied 
forth  mysterious  forms  of  darkness.  There 
was  something  weird  in  all  this  beauty  and 
silence. 

The  boys  were  scattered  along  in  the  tall 
grass  near  the  sand-bar,  which  sloped  down 
to  the  water's  edge  as  smooth  as  a  floor. 
All  lay  flat  on  their  faces,  rolled  up  in  their 
warm  buffalo-robes,  and  still  further  con 
cealed  by  the  shadows  of  the  trees.  The 
shaggy-haired  boy  had  a  bow  and  some  of 
his  best  arrows  hidden  under  his  robe.  No 
two  boys  were  together,  for  they  knew  by 
experience  the  temptation  to  whisper  under 
such  circumstances.  Every  redskin  was 
absorbed  in  watching  for  the  Little  People 
to  appear  upon  their  playground,  and  at  the 
same  time  he  must  be  upon  the  alert  for  an 
intruder,  such  as  Red  Fox,  or  the  Hooting- 
owl  of  the  woods. 

"It  seems  strange,"  thought  Teola,  as  he 
lay  there  motionless,  facing  the  far-off  silvery 
moon,  "that  these  little  folk  should  have 
been  appointed  to  do  a  great  work,"  for  he 
had  perfect  faith  in  his  grandfather's  legend 
of  the  Moon-Nibblers. 

"Ah-h-h!"  he  breathed,  for  now  he  heard 
60 


The  Da.nce  of  the  Little  People 

SL  faint  squeaking  in  the  thick  grass  and 
rushes.  Soon  several  tiny  bodies  appeared 
upon  the  open,  sandy  beach.  They  were  so 
round  and  so  tiny  that  one  could  scarcely  de 
tect  the  motion  of  their  little  feet.  They 
ran  to  the  edge  of  the  water  and  others  fol 
lowed  them,  until  there  was  a  great  mass  of 
the  Little  People  upon  the  clean,  level  sand. 

11  Oh,  if  Hinhan,  the  owl,  should  come 
now,  he  could  carry  away  both  claws  full!" 
Teola  fancied. 

Presently  there  was  a  commotion  among 
the  Hetunkala,  and  many  of  them  leaped 
high  into  the  air,  squeaking  as  if  for  a  signal. 
Teola  saw  hundreds  of  mice  coming  from 
every  direction.  Some  of  them  went  close 
by  his  hiding-place,  and  they  scrutinized  his 
motionless  body  apparently  with  much  care. 
But  the  young  hunter  instinctively  held  his 
breath,  so  that  they  could  not  smell  him 
strongly,  and  at  last  all  had  gone  by. 

The  big,  brown  mice  did  not  attend  this 
monthly  carnival.  They  were  too  wise  to 
expose  themselves  upon  the  open  shore  to 
the  watchful  eyes  of  their  enemies.  But 
upon  the  moonlit  beach  the  small  people, 
the  Moon-Nibblers,  had  wholly  given  them- 
61 


Red   Hunters    a.nd  the  AnimeJ  People 

selves  up  to  enjoyment,  and  seemed  to  be 
forgetful  of  their  danger.  Here  on  Wetaota 
was  the  greatest  gathering  that  Teola  had 
ever  seen  in  all  his  life. 

Occasionally  he  thought  he  noticed  the 
white  mouse  whom  he  supposed  to  be  their 
chief,  for  no  reason  except  that  he  was  differ 
ent  from  the  others,  and  that  was  the  super 
stition. 

As  he  watched,  circles  were  formed  upon 
the  sand,  in  which  the  mice  ran  round  and 
round.  At  times  they  would  all  stand  still, 
facing  inward,  while  two  or  three  leaped  in 
and  out  of  the  ring  with  wonderful  rapidity. 
There  were  many  changes  in  the  dance,  and 
now  and  then  one  or  two  would  remain  mo 
tionless  in  the  centre,  apparently  in  per 
formance  of  some  ceremony  which  was  not 
clear  to  Teola. 

All  at  once  the  entire  gathering  became, 
in  appearance,  a  heap  of  little  round  stones. 
There  was  neither  sound  nor  motion. 

;'Ho,  ho,  ho!"  Teola  shouted,  as  he  half 
raised  himself  from  his  hiding  -  place  and 
flourished  part  of  his  robe  in  the  clear  moon 
light.  A  big  bird  went  up  softly  among  the 
shadowy  trees.  All  of  the  boys  had  been 
62 


The   D&nce    of  the    Little   People 

so  fascinated  by  the  dance  that  they  had  for 
gotten  to  watch  for  the  corning  of  Hinhan, 
the  owl,  and  now  this  sudden  transforma 
tion  of  the  Little  People !  Each  one  of  them 
had  rolled  himself  into  the  shape  of  a  pebble, 
and  sat  motionless  close  to  the  sand  to  elude 
the  big-eyed  one. 

They  remained  so  until  the  owl  had  left 
his  former  perch  and  flown  away  to  more 
auspicious  hunting-grounds.  Then  the  play 
and  dance  became  more  general  and  livelier 
than  ever.  The  Moon  -  Nibblers  were  en 
tirely  given  over  to  the  spirit  and  gayety  of 
the  occasion.  They  ran  in  new  circles, 
sometimes  each  biting  the  tail  of  his  next 
neighbor.  Again,  after  a  great  deal  of 
squeaking,  they  all  sprang  high  in  the  air, 
towards  the  calm,  silvery  orb  of  the  moon. 
Apparently  they  also  beheld  it  in  front  of 
them,  reflected  in  the  placid  waters  of  We- 
taota,  for  they  advanced  in  columns  to  the 
water's  edge,  and  there  wheeled  into  circles 
and  whirled  in  yet  wilder  dance. 

At  the  height  of  the  strange  festival,  an 
other  alarm  came  from  the  shaggy-haired 
boy.  This  time  all  the  boys  spied  Red  Fox 
coming  as  fast  as  his  legs  could  carry  him 
63 


Red   Hunters  a.nd  the   ArvimaJ   People 

along  the  beach.  He,  too,  had  heard  the 
fairy  laughter  and  singing  of  the  Moon- 
Nibblers,  and  never  in  his  whole  wild  ca 
reer  is  he  better  pleased  than  when  he 
can  catch  a  few  of  them  for  breakfast  or 
supper. 

No  people  know  the  secret  of  the  dance 
except  a  few  old  Indians  and  Red  Fox.  He 
is  so  clever  that  he  is  always  on  the  watch 
for  it  just  before  the  full  moon.  At  the  first 
sound  that  came  to  his  sharp  ears  he  knew 
well  what  was  going  on,  and  the  excite 
ment  was  now  so  great  that  he  was  assured 
of  a  good  supper. 

"Hay-ahay!  Hay-ahay!"  shouted  the 
shaggy -haired  boy,  and  he  sent  a  swift  arrow 
on  a  dangerous  mission  for  Red  Fox.  In  a 
moment  there  came  another  war-whoop,  and 
then  another,  and  it  was  wisdom  for  the 
hungry  one  to  take  to  the  thick  woods. 

"Woo,  woo!  Eyayalo!  Woo,  woo!"  the 
boys  shouted  after  him,  but  he  was  already 
lost  in  the  shadows. 

The  boys  came  together.     Not  a   single 

mouse  was  to  be  seen  anywhere,  nor  would 

any  one  suspect  that  they  had  been  there  in 

such  numbers  a  few  moments  earlier,   ex- 

64 


The  DaLixce  of  the  Little  People 

cept  for  the  finest  of  tracery,   like  delicate 
handwriting,  upon  the  moonlit  sand. 

"We  have  learned  something  to-night," 
said  Teola.  "It  is  good.  As  for  me,  I 
shall  never  again  go  out  to  hunt  the  Little 
People." 


Wechah   the    Provider 


Wechali,  come  away!  the  dogs 
will  tease  you  dreadfully  if  they  find 
you  up  a  tree.  Enakanee  (hurry) !"  Wasula 
urged,  but  the  mischievous  Wechah  still 
chose  to  remain  upon  the  projecting  lirnb  of 
an  oak  which  made  him  a  comfortable  seat. 
It  was  apparently  a  great  temptation  to  him 
to  climb  every  large,  spreading  tree  that 
came  in  his  way,  and  Wasula  had  had  some 
thrilling  experiences  with  her  pet  when  he 
had  been  attacked  by  the  dogs  of  the  camp 
and  even  by  wild  animals,  so  it  was  no 
wonder  that  she  felt  some  anxiety  for  him. 
Wasula  was  the  daughter  of  a  well-known 
warrior  of  the  Rock  Cliff  villagers  of  the 
Minnesota  River.  Her  father  had  no  son 
living,  therefore  she  was  an  only  child,  and 
the  most-sought-after  of  any  maiden  in  that 
band.  No  other  girl  could  boast  of  Wasula 's 
66 


Wechah    the   Provider 

skill  in  paddling  the  birch  canoe  or  running 
upon  snow-shoes,  nor  could  any  gather  the 
wild  rice  faster  than  she.  She  could  pitch 
the  prettiest  teepees,  and  her  nimble,  small 
fingers  worked  very  skilfully  with  the  needle. 
She  had  made  many  embroidered  tobacco- 
pouches  and  quivers  which  the  young  men 
were  eager  to  get. 

More  than  all  this,  Wasula  loved  to  roam 
alone  in  the  woods.  She  was  passionately 
fond  of  animals,  so  it  was  not  strange  that, 
when  her  father  found  and  brought  home 
a  baby  raccoon,  the  maiden  took  it  for  her 
own,  kept  it  in  an  upright  Indian  cradle 
and  played  mother  to  it. 

Wasula  was  as  pretty  and  free  as  a  teal- 
duck,  or  a  mink  with  its  slender,  graceful 
body  and  small  face.  She  had  black,  glossy 
hair,  hanging  in  two  plaits  on  each  side  of 
her  head,  and  a  calm,  childlike  face,  with  a 
delicate  aquiline  nose.  Wechah,  when  he 
was  first  put  into  her  hands,  was  nothing 
more  than  a  tiny  ball  of  striped  fur,  not  un 
like  a  little  kitten.  His  bright  eyes  already 
shone  with  some  suggestion  of  the  mischief 
and  cunning  of  his  people.  Wasula  made  a 
perfect  baby  of  him.  She  even  carved  all 
67 


Red  Hunters  and  the  Animal  People 

sorts  of  playthings  out  of  hoof  and  bone,  and 
tied  them  to  the  bow  of  the  cradle,  and  he 
loved  to  play  with  them.  He  apparently 
understood  much  that  she  said  to  him,  but 
he  never  made  any  a,ttempt  to  speak.  He 
preferred  to  use  what  there  is  of  his  own  lan 
guage,  but  that,  too,  he  kept  from  her  as  well 
as  he  could,  for  it  is  a  secret  belonging  only 
to  his  tribe. 

Wechah  had  now  grown  large  and  hand 
some,  for  he  was  fat  and  sleek.  They  had 
been  constantly  together  for  over  a  year, 
and  his  foster  -  mother  had  grown  very 
much  attached  to  him.  The  young  men 
who  courted  Wasula  had  conspired  at  differ 
ent  times  against  his  life,  but  upon  second 
thought  they  realized  that  if  Wasula  should 
suspect  the  guilt  of  one  of  them  his  chance  of 
winning  her  would  be  lost  forever. 

It  is  true  he  tried  their  patience  severely, 
but  he  could  not  help  this,  for  he  loved  his 
mistress,  and  his  ambition  was  to  be  first  in 
her  regard.  He  was  very  jealous,  and,  if  any 
one  appeared  to  divide  her  attention,  he 
would  immediately  do  something  to  break 
up  the  company.  Sometimes  he  would  re 
sort  to  hiding  the  young  man's  quiver,  bow, 
68 


the  Provider 

or  tomahawk,  if  perchance  he  put  it  down. 
Again  he  would  pull  his  long  hair,  but  they 
could  never  catch  him  at  this.  He  was 
quick  and  sly.  Once  he  tripped  a  proud 
warrior  so  that  he  fell  sprawling  at  the  feet 
of  Wasula.  This  was  embarrassing,  and  he 
would  never  again  lay  himself  open  to  such 
a  mishap.  At  another  time  he  pulled  the 
loose  blanket  off  the  suitor,  and  left  him 
naked.  Sometimes  he  would  pull  the  eagle 
feather  from  the  head  of  one  and  run  up  a 
tree  with  it,  where  he  would  remain,  and  no 
coaxing  could  induce  him  to  come  down  until 
Wasula  said : 

"Wechah,  give  him  his  feather!  He  de 
sires  to  go  home." 

Wechah  truly  thought  this  was  bright  and 
cunning,  and  Wasula  thought  so  too.  While 
she  always  reprimanded  him,  she  was  in 
wardly  grateful  to  him  for  breaking  the  mo 
notony  of  courtship  or  rebuking  the  pre 
sumption  of  some  unwelcome  suitor. 

"Come  down,  Wechah!"  she  called,  again 
and  again.  He  came  part  way  at  last,  only 
to  take  his  seat  upon  another  limb,  where  he 
formed  himself  into  a  veritable  muff  or 
nest  upon  the  bough  in  a  most  unconcerned 
69 


Red   Hunters  a.nd   the   AnimeJ   People 

way.  Any  one  else  would  have  been  so  ex 
asperated  that  all  the  dogs  within  hearing 
would  have  been  called  into  service  to  bay 
him  down,  but  Wasula's  love  for  Wechah 
was  truly  strong,  and  her  patience  with  him 
was  extraordinary.  At  last  she  struck  the 
tree  a  sharp  blow  with  her  hatchet.  The 
little  fellow  picked  himself  up  and  hastily  de 
scended,  for  he  knew  that  his  mistress  was 
in  earnest,  and  she  had  a  way  of  punishing 
him  for  disobedience.  It  was  simple,  but  it 
was  sufficient  for  Wechah. 

Wasula  had  the  skin  of  a  buffalo  calf's 
head  for  a  work-bag,  beautifully  embroid 
ered  with  porcupine  quills  about  the  open 
mouth,  nose,  eyes,  and  ears.  She  would  slip 
this  over  Wechah 's  head  and  tie  his  fore-paws 
together  so  that  he  could  not  pull  it  off. 
Then  she  would  take  him  to  the  spring  under 
the  shadow  of  the  trees  and  let  him  look  at 
himself.  This  was  enough  punishment  for 
him.  Sometimes  even  the  mention  of  the 
calf's  head  was  enough  to  make  him  sub 
mit. 

Of  course,  the  little  Striped  Face  could  take 
his  leave  at  any  time  that  he  became  dis 
satisfied  with  his  life  among  the  Red  people. 
70 


WecheJi  the  Provider 

Wasula  had  made  it  plain  to  him  that  he  was 
free.  He  could  go  or  stay ;  but,  apparently, 
he  loved  her  too  well  to  think  of  leaving. 
He  would  curl  himself  up  into  a  ball  and  lie 
by  the  hour  upon  some  convenient  branch 
while  the  girl  was  cutting  wood  or  sitting 
under  a  tree  doing  her  needle  -  work.  He 
would  study  her  every  movement,  and  very 
often  divine  her  intentions. 

Wasula  was  a  friend  to  all  the  little  people 
of  the  woods,  and  especially  sympathized 
with  the  birds  in  their  love-making  and  home- 
building.  Wechah  must  learn  to  respect 
her  wishes.  He  had  once  stolen  and  de 
voured  some  young  robins.  The  parent 
birds  were  frantic  about  their  loss,  which 
attracted  the  girl's  attention.  The  wicked 
animal  was  in  the  midst  of  his  feast. 

"  Glechu !  glechu  (Come  down) !"  she  called, 
excitedly.  He  fully  understood  from  the 
tone  that  all  was  not  right,  but  he  would 
not  jump  from  the  tree  and  run  for  the  deep 
woods,  thereby  avoiding  punishment  and 
gaining  his  freedom.  The  rogue  came  down 
with  all  the  outward  appearance  of  one  who 
pleads  guilty  to  the  charge  and  throws  him 
self  upon  the  judge's  mercy.  She  at  once 


Red   Hunters  and  the  Animal  People 

put  him  in  the  calf's  head  and  bound  his  legs, 
and  he  had  nothing  to  eat  for  a  day  and  a 
night. 

It  was  a  great  trial  to  both  of  them. 
Wadetaka,  the  dog,  for  whom  he  had  no 
special  love,  was  made  to  stand  guard  over 
the  prisoner  so  that  he  could  not  get  away 
and  no  other  dog  could  take  advantage  of 
his  helplessness.  Wasula  was  very  sorry  for 
him,  but  she  felt  that  he  must  learn  his  lesson. 
That  night  she  lay  awake  for  a  long  time. 
To  be  sure,  Wechah  had  been  good  and  quiet 
all  day,  but  his  tricks  were  many,  and  she 
had  discovered  that  his  people  have  danger- 
calls  and  calls  for  help  quite  different  from 
their  hunting  and  love  calls. 

After  everybody  was  asleep,  even  Wade 
taka  apparently  snoring,  and  the  camp-fire 
was  burning  low,  there  was  a  gentle  move 
ment  from  the  calf's  -  head  bag.  Wasula 
uncovered  her  head  and  listened.  Wechah 
called  softly  for  help. 

"Poor  Wechah!  I  don't  want  him  to  be 
angry  with  me,  but  he  must  let  the  little 
birds'  homes  alone." 

Again  Wechah  gave  his  doleful  call.  In 
a  little  while  she  heard  a  stealthy  footfall, 
72 


Wecha.h   the  Provider 

and  at  the  same  time  Wadetaka  awoke  and 
rushed  upon  something. 

It  was  a  large  raccoon !  He  ran  up  a  near 
by  tree  to  save  himself,  for  Wadetaka  had 
started  all  the  dogs  of  the  camp.  Next  the 
hunters  came  out.  Wasula  hurriedly  put  on 
her  moccasins  and  ran  to  keep  the  men  from 
shooting  the  rescuer. 

Wechah's  friend  took  up  his  position  upon 
one  of  the  upper  limbs  of  a  large  oak,  from 
which  he  looked  down  with  blazing  eyes 
upon  a  motley  crew.  Near  the  root  of  the 
tree  Wechah  lay  curled  up  in  a  helpless  ball. 
The  new  -  comer  scarcely  understood  how 
this  unfortunate  member  of  his  tribe  came 
into  such  a  predicament,  for  when  some  one 
brought  a  torch  he  was  seen  to  rise,  but  im 
mediately  fell  over  again. 

"  Please  do  not  kill  him,"  pleaded  Wasula. 
"  It  is  a  visitor  of  my  pet,  whom  I  am  pun 
ishing  for  his  misconduct.  As  you  know, 
he  called  for  help  according  to  the  custom  of 
his  tribe." 

They  all  laughed  heartily,  and  each  Indian 

tied  up  his  dog  for  the  rest  of  the  night,  so 

that  the  visitor  might  get  away  in  safety, 

while  the  girl  brought  her  pet  to  her  own  bed. 

6  73 


Red   Hurvters    a^rvd   the   AnimeJ   People 

It  was  the  Moon  of  Falling  Leaves,  and  the 
band  to  which  Wasula's  father  belonged  were 
hunting  in  the  deep  woods  in  Minnesota,  the 
Land  of  Sky-colored  Water.  The  band  had 
divided  itself  into  many  small  parties  for  the 
fall  and  winter  hunt.  When  this  particular 
party  reached  Minne tonka,  the  Big  Lake, 
they  found  the  hunting  excellent.  Deer  were 
plenty,  and  the  many  wooded  islands  afford 
ed  them  good  feeding  -  places.  The  men 
hunted  daily,  and  the  women  were  busy  pre 
paring  the  skins  and  curing  the  meat.  We- 
chah  wandered  much  alone,  as  Wasula  was 
busy  helping  her  mother. 

All  went  well  for  many  weeks;  and  even 
when  the  snow  fell  continuously  for  many  a 
day  and  the  wind  began  to  blow,  so  that  no 
hunter  dared  emerge  from  his  teepee,  there 
was  dried  venison  still  and  all  were  cheerful. 
At  last  the  sun  appeared. 

"  Hoye!  hoye!"  was  the  cheerful  cry  of  the 
hunting  bonfire  -  builder,  very  early  in  the 
morning.  As  it  rang  musically  on  the  clear, 
frosty  air,  each  hunter  set  out,  carrying  his 
snow-shoes  upon  his  back,  in  the  pleasant 
anticipation  of  a  good  hunt.  After  the 
customary  smoke,  they  all  disappeared  in 
74 


Wechivh   the  Provider 

the  woods  on  the  north  shore  of  Minne- 
tonka. 

Alas!  it  was  a  day  of  evil  fortune.  There 
was  no  warning.  In  the  late  afternoon  one 
came  back  bleeding,  singing  a  death-dirge. 
"We  were  attacked  by  the  Ojibways!  All 
are  dead  save  myself!" 

Thus  was  the  little  camp  suddenly  plunged 
into  deep  sorrow  and  mourning.  Doleful 
wails  came  forth  from  every  lodge,  and  the 
echoes  from  the  many  coves  answered  them 
with  a  double  sadness. 

Again  the  storm-wind  raged.  This  time 
the  dried  meat  was  gone,  and  all  the  women 
did  nothing  but  bewail  their  misfortunes. 
"The  evil  spirit  is  upon  us!"  they  cried. 
"The  enemy  has  taken  away  our  husbands, 
and  now  Wazeeyah,  the  god  of  storm  and 
winter,  is  ready  to  slay  us !"  So  they  mourn 
ed  as  those  having  no  hope. 

When  at  last  the  storm  ceased,  the  snow 
was  very  deep.  The  little  ones  were  fam 
ished.  There  was  no  meat  in  the  camp  and 
there  were  no  hunters  to  hunt.  They  were 
far  from  their  permanent  village  upon  the 
Minnesota  River.  They  must  have  food 
first,  and  then  try  to  get  back.  So,  for  the 
75 


Red   Hunters   and  the    Animal   People 

children's  sake,  the  brave  mothers  and  elder 
sisters  began  to  look  about  them  to  decide 
upon  some  action. 

11  Wasula,  my  child,  what  are  you  thinking 
of?"  the  mother  asked. 

"Mother,  my  father  taught  me  to  hunt, 
and  he  took  so  much  pride  in  my  snow-shoe 
ing!  See,  mother,  here  is  one  of  his  quivers 
full  of  arrows,  and  here  is  a  good  bow."  The 
girl  spoke  earnestly.  "  I  can  take  care  of  you, 
mother,  until  we  get  back  to  our  relatives. 
I  can  shoot  as  straight  as  any  brave,  and  my 
father  taught  me  how  to  circle  a  doe  or  buck 
to  a  standstill.  Wechah  will  go  with  me  and 
guide  me,  so  that  I  shall  not  be  lost,"  con 
tinued  Wasula,  with  a  show  of  cheerfulness. 

"  But  you  must  be  careful,  my  child !  The 
O  jib  ways  are  not  far  away.  Some  of  their 
warriors  will  perhaps  have  a  mind  to  come 
again,  now  that  they  have  overcome  all  the 
men  of  our  little  band,"  sadly  warned  the 
mother. 

Meanwhile  Wechah  sat  by  watching  every 
motion,  as  if  trying  to  read  their  thoughts. 
He  was  evidently  delighted  when  Wasula 
girdled  herself  and  threw  her  snow-shoes  di 
agonally  across  her  back.  He  gave  one  big, 
76 


Wecha.h   the  Provider 

joyous  leap  and  ran  out  of  sight  ahead  of  her 
as  she  set  out  on  the  hunt.  Her  poor  mother 
watched  her  through  the  pin-holes  in  the 
teepee.  "Ah,  I  fear — I  fear  the  dreadful 
warriors  of  the  O  jib  ways!"  she  muttered. 

They  went  over  the  snow-clad  Minnetonka 
towards  Crane  Island,  and  the  famished  girl 
was  scarcely  able  to  run  upon  snow-shoes,  al 
though  ordinarily  it  was  an  easy  task  for  her. 
Her  people  had  been  living  upon  rose-berries 
and  roots.  Wechah,  with  a  light  foot,  ran 
ahead  of  her  into  the  thick  woods. 

No  sooner  was  he  out  of  sight  of  home  than 
all  his  native  cunning  vividly  returned  to 
him,  and  the  desire  to  find  whatever  was  in 
his  way.  Through  the  frosty  air  and  among 
the  snow-clad  multitudinous  trees  he  swiftly 
ran.  His  ancient  calling  thrilled  him  through 
and  through.  Now  and  then  he  ran  up  a 
tree,  leaped  far  into  the  soft  snow,  and  away 
he  glided  again.  Not  yet  do  the  wild  in 
habitants  of  the  woods  come  out  for  their 
guest,  at  least  not  upon  Crane  Island,  for 
Wechah  had  not  crossed  a  single  trail. 

Deep  in  the  forest  at  last  the  little  Striped 
Face  gave  his  signal-call,  according  to  the 
custom  of  his  people.  Wasula  turned  in  the 
77 


R.ed   Hunters    and   the    Animal   People 

direction  of  the  sound  and  peered  sharply 
through  the  snow-laden  boughs.  There  he 
stood  upon  a  large  limb,  anxiously  awaiting 
her  coming. 

He  leaped  from  his  high  perch  toward  her, 
struck  the  ground  like  a  pillow,  and  made  the 
soft  snow  fly  up  like  loose  feathers. 

"  I  see — I  see  your  deer-track,"  she  laughed 
at  him.  "We  shall  try  to  get  one!  You 
must  now  follow  me,  Wechah.  It  is  Wasula's 
turn  to  lead." 

The  maiden's  bow  was  carefully  examined, 
and  she  picked  out  one  of  her  best  arrows. 
Instead  of  following  the  trail,  like  a  true 
hunter  she  started  with  the  wind  and  ran 
along  for  some  distance,  then  described  a 
circle,  coming  just  inside  of  her  starting- 
point.  Again  she  made  another  circle  within 
the  first,  but  no  deer  had  crossed  her  track. 
Upon  the  third  round  she  spied  them  hiding 
behind  a  large,  fallen  oak,  whose  dead  leaves 
afforded  some  shelter.  As  she  described 
another  circle  to  get  within  arrow-shot,  the 
doe  stretched  out  at  full  length  upon  the 
snow,  laying  her  ears  back,  rabbit-like,  to  es 
cape  detection.  Wasula  knew  the  trick  of 
holding  her.  She  did  not  pause  for  an  in- 
78 


WecKa^h    the   Provider 

stant,  but  ran  along  until  she  gained  an 
opening  for  a  shot.  Then  she  turned  quickly 
upon  the  quivering  doe  and  let  her  swift 
arrow  fly. 

Instantly  the  doe  and  her  two  full-grown 
fawns  got  up  and  sprang  away  through  the 
woods  and  out  of  sight.  Wasula  had  seen 
her  arrow  enter  the  doe's  side.  She  exam 
ined  the  trail — it  showed  drops  of  blood— 
and  immediately  the  huntress  followed  the 
trail. 

In  a  few  moments  she  heard  Wechah  give 
his  shrill,  weird  'coon -call.  Through  an 
alley  between  rows  of  trees  she  saw  him 
standing  proudly  upon  the  dead  body  of 
Takcha. 

''Oh,  I  thank  thee,  Great  Mystery!  I 
thank  you,  Wechah,  for  your  kind  guid 
ance,"  Wasula  spoke,  in  a  trembling  voice. 
She  took  her  hunting-knife  from  her  belt  and 
skinned  the  legs  of  the  doe  up  to  the  knee- 
joints.  Having  un jointed  them,  she  drew 
the  fore-legs  backward  and  fastened  them 
securely;  then  she  put  her  hunting-strap 
through  the  under- jaw  and  attached  her 
carrying-straps.  Thus  she  proceeded  to  drag 
the  body  home. 

79 


R.ed   Hunters   a.nd  the   ArvimaJ   People 

Wechah  was  as  happy  as  if  he  had  shot  the 
deer  himself.  Wasula  realized  that  her  peo 
ple  were  starving  and  she  ran  as  fast  as  she 
could,  but  before  she  was  half-way  across 
the  lake  her  companion  was  in  camp.  As  she 
approached  the  shore,  the  stronger  of  the 
women  came  running  to  meet  and  relieve 
her  of  her  burden.  They  were  overwhelmed 
with  joy.  She  slipped  off  her  shoulder- 
straps  and  ran  to  her  mother,  while  two  of 
the  others  hitched  themselves  to  her  carry 
ing-lines  and  ran  with  the  deer.  "Wasula, 
heroine,  huntress!  The  gracious  and  high- 
minded!"  In  such  wise  the  old  people  sang 
her  praises. 

Several  of  the  women  had  been  out  hunt 
ing,  like  Wasula,  but  none  were  as  successful 
as  she  and  Wechah  had  been.  Some  brought 
back  a  single  rabbit  or  a  grouse  to  quiet  their 
crying  babies.  One  brought  a  dead  raccoon 
which  she  had  found  in  a  trap.  Wasula  was 
sorry  when  Wechah  saw  this  and  became 
visibly  depressed. 

When  all  the  venison  had  been  eaten,  the 

rigor  of  winter  still  held  in  this  northern 

clime.     The  maiden  hunted  every  day,  but 

without  success.     One  afternoon  the  sun  was 

80 


the  Provider 

getting  low  and  she  was  still  far  from  camp, 
but  she  could  not  bear  to  go  back  empty- 
handed.  She  felt  that  upon  her  success  de 
pended  the  lives  of  the  others,  for  they  could 
not  yet  move  on  foot  toward  the  village 
on  the  Minnesota  River — the  children  would 
suffer  cruelly  in  such  an  attempt. 

She  was  upon  the  trail  of  Shunktokecha, 
the  wolf — not  that  she  had  any  hope  of  over 
taking  him,  but  it  is  well  known  that  he  is  a 
good  guide.  Wechah,  too,  was  apparently 
unwilling  to  leave  the  trail.  Their  course 
was  directed  toward  one  of  the  outlets  of 
the  lake. 

When  they  reached  this  stream,  other 
trails  joined  the  one  they  were  following, 
making  a  broad  path,  and  here  and  there  the 
ice  of  the  creek  was  scratched  by  the  wolf 
people  as  they  passed.  The  huntress  quick 
ened  her  steps  in  renewed  hope.  She  knew 
that  upon  the  trail  there  lies  much  of  joy, 
of  fascination,  and  catastrophe;  but  every 
trailer  only  keeps  the  joy  in  mind  —  it  is 
enough  to  realize  misfortune  when  it  comes! 

Around  a  sudden  bend  of  the  frozen  creek 
another  hunter's  voice  was  heard.  It  was 
Kangee,  the  raven.  "  Surely,  there  is  game 
81 


Red   Hunters    and    the   Animal   People 

there,  dead  or  alive,  for  Kangee  never  speaks 
without  a  cause,"  she  murmured. 

Now  Wechah  disappeared  around  the 
point,  and  when  she  came  into  full  view  she 
saw  her  pet  jerk  out  of  the  stream  something 
living.  As  the  object  fell  it  curved  itself 
upon  the  ice  and  again  sprang  glittering  in 
the  air. 

Wasula  laughed,  in  spite  of  herself,  the 
sing-song  laugh  of  the  wild  maid  of  the  woods. 
"Hoya!  hoya!"  she  screamed,  and  ran  for 
ward.  Again  and  again  Wechah  snatched 
out  of  the  live  water  a  large  fish.  When  she 
reached  the  spring  in  the  creek,  her  pet  had 
already  taken  out  enough  to  feed  the  whole 
camp. 

The  girl  fell  on  her  knees  and  peered  into 
the  water.  It  was  packed  to  the  ice  with 
the  spring  exodus  of  the  finny  tribes  of  Minne- 
tonka  for  the  spawning !  Every  year,  before 
the  spring  opens,  they  crowd  upon  one  an 
other  in  the  narrow  passes  of  the  streams. 
There  was  a  spring  here  where  the  ice  was 
open,  and  hence  the  broad  trail  and  the 
scratches  of  wolves,  bears,  raccoons,  crows, 
ravens,  and  many  more. 

"Good  Wechah!  We  shall  live  now — our 
82 


Wecha.h   the  Provider 

people  cannot  starve,"  said  Wasula,  feeling 
ly,  to  her  pet.  Her  responsibility  as  the  main 
support  of  the  camp  was  greatly  lightened. 
At  last  she  took  her  hunting-knife  from  her 
belt  and  stripped  the  bark  from  a  near-by 
birch.  She  shaped  it  into  a  rough  canoe  and 
threw  into  it  as  many  fish  as  it  would  hold. 
The  sun  already  hovered  among  the  tree- 
tops  as  she  hitched  herself  by  means  of  her 
carrying-lines  to  the  canoe-shaped  tray  full 
of  fish  and  started  homeward  across  an  arm 
of  the  frozen  lake. 

Wechah  ran  playfully  in  front  of  her.  The 
wild  pet  was  full  of  his  cunning  ways.  When 
they  reached  a  wooded  shore  he  suddenly 
disappeared,  and  the  girl  did  not  know  which 
way  he  went.  Presently  she  thought  she 
heard  a  baby  cry  away  off  in  the  woods ;  in  a 
little  while  there  seemed  to  be  a  skunk  calling, 
nearer,  and  still  nearer;  again  she  heard  the 
call  of  an  owl.  Finally  the  mimic  rushed 
upon  her  from  behind  the  shadow  of  a  huge 
pine,  swiftly  pursued  by  a  bob -tailed  'coon. 

"Ugh,  Wechah!  are  you  afraid  of  Sintay? 

'Tis  he  is  wicked  and  full  of  cunning!     He 

has  broken  away  from  several  steel  traps,  and 

he  always  takes  the  bait  of  a  deadfall  with- 

83 


R.ed   Hunters   a.nd  the   AnimaJ   People 

out  harm  to  himself.  If  he  ever  chases  you 
again  I  will  punish  him,"  declared  the  hunt 
ress. 

On  seeing  Wasula,  the  animal  had  dis 
appeared  among  the  shadows  almost  as  mys 
teriously  as  he  emerged  from  them.  It  was 
now  the  close  of  Wechah  tawee,  the  'coon's 
month,  when  the  male  raccoon  leaves  his 
winter  quarters  and  begins  to  look  for  com 
pany.  This  particular  individual  was  well 
known  tc  the  Indian  hunters  upon  Lake 
Minnetonka.  As  Wasula  had  said,  he  was 
the  cunningest  of  his  tribe,  and  he  was  also 
unusually  large  and  of  a  savage  disposition. 
True,  he  fared  luxuriously  every  day  upon 
berries,  mice,  fish,  frogs,  eggs  from  the 
swamps,  and  young  birds  not  yet  able  to 
fly.  Then  he  sleeps  a  long  and  happy  sleep 
through  the  coldest  moons  of  the  year,  un 
disturbed  save  when  the  Red  man  and  his 
dogs  are  about — he  who  loves  to  eat  the  fat 
of  the  'coon  and  makes  a  beautiful  robe  of 
his  striped  skin! 

"  You  must  keep  away  from  Sintay,  for  he 
is  dangerous,"  said  Wasula,  who  always 
talked  to  her  pet  as  if  he  understood  every 
word  she  said.  Nevertheless,  while  she  strug- 


Wechach   the  Provider 

gled  on  with  her  load  he  had  once  more  dis 
appeared.  Soon  a  cry  from  him  attracted 
her  attention,  and  turning  a  little  aside  from 
her  path,  she  beheld  Sintay  sitting  upon  a 
snow-covered  log  at  the  root  of  a  large  hol 
low  tree,  holding  a  comb  of  wild  honey  in  his 
two  paws,  listening  angrily  and  growling 
over  his  interrupted  meal.  In  a  moment 
something  sprang  into  the  air  directly  over 
his  head  and  alighted  in  front  of  him.  It 
was  Wechah. 

Sintay  screamed  and  clawed  the  air  with 
his  right  paw,  at  the  same  time  clinging  to 
the  comb  with  the  left.  The  new-comer 
bravely  faced  him.  Both  were  desperately 
in  earnest,  growling  and  snapping  their 
sharp  teeth.  The  bee-tree  was  the  bone  of 
contention,  and  it  was  well  worth  a  fight. 

Striking  out  with  his  big  right  paw,  the 
tame  raccoon  launched  forth  to  secure  the 
comb,  whereupon  Sintay  struck  at  him  with 
his  disengaged  paw,  but  refused  to  let  go 
with  the  other.  It  was  a  ludicrous  sight, 
and  Wasula  could  not  help  laughing,  es 
pecially  when  her  pet  succeeded  in  tearing 
away  a  part  of  the  comb  and  the  contents 
were  generously  daubed  over  their  fur.  But 

85 


Red  Hunters  and  the   AnimoJ   People 

the  fight  soon  became  serious,  and  Wechah 
was  getting  the  worst  beating  he  had  ever 
had  when  his  mistress  interfered.  She  struck 
at  Sintay  with  her  drawn  bow  and  he  dodged 
quickly  behind  the  tree,  still  unwilling  to 
leave  it  to  the  intruders,  but  at  last  he  fled. 
It  was  the  best  thing  for  him  to  do ! 

Wechah  stood  before  Wasula  bleeding,  his 
robe  of  fine  fur  sadly  ruffled  and  plastered 
with  honey  and  snow.  He  looked  sorry  for 
himself,  yet  proud  of  his  discovery,  and  there 
was  no  time  now  to  pity  or  rejoice.  On  they 
ran  till,  within  hailing  distance  of  the  camp, 
the  girl  gave  the  wolf -call.  The  others  were 
already  very  anxious.  "She  is  coming!" 
they  cried  to  one  another,  joyously,  and  two 
went  forth  to  meet  her,  for  her  call  meant  a 
successful  hunt. 

Thus  the  maiden  and  her  tame  raccoon 
saved  several  families  from  starvation.  The 
run  of  fish  would  last  for  days,  and  there  was 
much  honey  in  the  tree,  which  they  secured 
on  the  following  day. 

"  It  is  my  wish,"  said  Wasula,  "that  you 

do  not  trap  the  'coon  again  this  season,  for 

the  sake  of  Wechah,  who  has  saved  us  all. 

In  gratitude  to  him,  withdraw  your  deadfalls." 

86 


Wechah   the   Provider 

All  agreed  to  this.  Yet  one  spring  morn 
ing  when  they  were  about  to  set  out  on  the 
return  journey  he  was  not  to  be  found,  and 
no  one  had  seen  him.  The  huntress  im 
mediately  took  down  her  bow  and  quiver 
and  searched  for  his  track,  which  she  fol 
lowed  into  the  woods.  Her  love  for  Wechah 
had  never  been  fully  realized  by  the  people 
or  perhaps  even  by  herself.  "If  Sintay  has 
met  and  taken  revenge  upon  him,  I  shall  not 
return  without  his  scalp,"  she  said  to  herself. 

Over  the  still  frozen  lake  to  the  nearest 
island  lay  Wechah' s  well-known  track,  and 
he  was  apparently  hunting  for  company. 
It  was  the  time  of  year  when  his  people  do 
so.  He  had  run  far  and  wide,  meeting  here 
and  there  a  bachelor  'coon.  The  tracks  told 
the  story  of  how  they  merely  dared  one  an 
other  and  parted. 

At  last  the  trail  lay  over  a  slope  overlook 
ing  a  little  cove,  where  there  stood  a  large 
sugar-maple.  The  upper  quarter  of  it  had 
been  torn  off  by  lightning,  leaving  a  very 
high  stump.  Wechah's  tracks  led  directly 
to  this  tree,  and  the  scratches  on  its  bark 
plainly  told  who  lived  there.  It  was  the 
home  of  Wechawee,  the  'coon  maid. 


R.ed   Hunters    and   the   Animal   People 

Wasula  took  her  small  hatchet  from  her 
belt  and  struck  several  quick  blows.  There 
was  a  scrambling  inside,  and  in  a  moment 
Wechah  poked  his  quaint  striped  face  from 
the  top.  He  looked  very  much  abashed. 
Like  a  guilty  dog  he  whined,  but  showed  no 
desire  to  come  down. 

"Wechah,  you  frightened  me!  I  thought 
you  had  been  killed.  I  am  glad  now,  my 
heart  is  good,  that  you  have  found  your 
mate." 

At  this  Wechah' s  new  wife  pushed  her 
cunning  head  out  beside  that  of  her  husband. 
Wasula  stood  looking  at  them  both  for  a  few 
minutes  with  mingled  pleasure  and  sorrow, 
and  ere  she  left  she  sang  a  maiden's  serenade 
to  the  bridegroom  —  the  founder  of  a  new 
clan! 


The  Mustering   of  the  Herds 


MOO!  Moo!"  rang  out  the  deep,  air- 
rending  call — the  gathering  call  of  the 
herds!  Hinpoha,  or  Curly  Hair,  the  young 
bison  mother,  threw  back  her  head  and  lis 
tened  nervously.  She  stood  over  her  new 
born  baby  in  a  hidden  nook  upon  the  Shae- 
yela  River,  that  flows  through  the  Land  of 
Mystery. 

No  one  was  there  to  see,  except  two  mag 
pies  which  were  loitering  in  the  neighbor 
hood,  apparently  waiting  for  the  mother  to 
go  away  that  they  might  tease  the  helpless 
infant. 

Tenderly  she  licked  the  moist  hair  of  her 
dear  one's  coat,  while  the  beautiful  black- 
and-white  bird  with  the  long  tail  talked  to 
his  mate  of  mischief  and  plunder.  Then  the 
mother  gently  poked  and  pushed  her  little 
one,  persuading  her  to  get  up  and  try  her 
7  89 


R-ed   Hunters   and   the  AnimaJ   People 

tiny,  soft-soled  feet.  It  was  evident  that 
she  was  not  a  common  bison  calf.  Her  color 
was  not  reddish  brown,  but  a  soft,  creamy 
white,  like  that  of  a  sheep — the  color  of 
royalty ! 

She  toddled  about  unsteadily  upon  the 
thick  mat  of  buffalo-grass.  As  she  learned 
to  walk,  step  by  step,  the  young  mother  fol 
lowed  her  with  anxious  eyes.  Presently  the 
little  creature  made  a  feeble  attempt  at 
running.  She  lifted  up  her  woolly  tail,  ele 
vated  a  pair  of  transparent,  leaf -like  ears, 
and  skipped  awkwardly  around  her  mother, 
who  never  took  her  black,  limpid  eyes  from 
her  wonderful  first-born. 

' '  Moo !  Moo !' '  Again  Hinpoha  heard  the 
impatient  gathering  call.  Hastily  she  push 
ed  her  baby  with  caressing  nose  into  an  old 
buffalo  -  wallow  overhung  with  tall  grass, 
making  a  little  cosey  nest.  The  drooping 
grass,  like  the  robe  of  the  Indian,  concealed 
the  little  calf  completely. 

"You  must  stay  here,"  she  signed.  "Do 
not  open  your  eyes  to  any  stranger.  Do  not 
move  at  all." 

Hinpoha  trotted  northward,  following  the 
ravine  in  which  she  had  hidden  her  calf.  No 
90 


The  Mustering   of  the   Herds 

sooner  had  she  disappeared  from  sight  than 
those  old  plunderers,  magpie  and  his  mate, 
swooped  down  from  the  lone  willow- tree  that 
overhung  the  spot.  Both  perched  lightly 
upon  the  edge  of  the  buffalo-wallow.  They 
saw  and  heard  nothing.  They  looked  at 
each  other  in  surprise.  "Ka,  ka,  ka,"  they 
talked  together,  wondering  what  had  become 
of  the  baby  bison. 

Up  the  long  ascent  Hinpoha  ran,  until  she 
reached  a  point  from  which  she  could  com 
mand  the  valley  and  the  place  where  she  had 
hidden  away  her  treasure.  Her  watchful 
eyes  ranged  round  the  horizon  and  swept  the 
surrounding  country.  There  was  not  a  wolf 
there,  she  thought.  She  could  see  the  lone 
willow-tree  that  marked  the  spot.  Beyond, 
the  rough  ridges  and  occasional  buttes  were 
studded  with  pines  and  cedars,  while  the 
white  pillars  and  towers  of  the  Bad  Lands 
rose  grandly  in  the  distance. 

As  she  went  on  to  rejoin  her  herd  upon  the 
plains  of  the  Shaeyela,  she  beheld  upon  the 
flats  the  bison  women  gathered  in  great, 
black  masses,  while  on  either  side  of  them 
the  buffalo  men  roamed  in  small  groups  or 
singly,  like  walking  pine-trees.  Shaeyela 


FLed  Hunters  a^nd  the   Animal  People 

had  never  looked  more  lovely  than  on  that 
morning  in  early  spring  —  a  warm,  bluish 
haze  brooding  over  it  —  the  big,  ungainly 
cottonwoods,  their  branches  knotted  and 
gnarled  like  the  naked  limbs  of  the  old  men, 
guarding  the  thin  silver  line  of  the  river. 

Hinpoha  ran  swiftly  down  the  last  descent, 
now  and  then  pausing  for  a  moment  to  an 
nounce  her  coming.  Ordinarily  she  would 
have  returned  to  her  people  quietly  and  un 
noticed,  but  she  was  excited  by  the  unex 
pected  summons  and  moved  to  reply.  As 
she  entered  the  valley  she  saw  other  buffalo 
women  returning  from  their  spring  nurseries 
in  the  gulches,  giving  their  responses  as  they 
came.  There  was  an  undertone  murmur 
throughout  the  great  concourse.  All  seemed 
to  be  moving  toward  the  edge  of  the  belt 
of  timber  that  clothed  the  river  -  banks. 
They  pressed  through  a  scattered  growth 
of  gray-green  buffalo-berry  bushes. 

By  the  signs  of  the  buffalo  women  and  the 
sound  of  their  lowings,  Hinpoha  knew  that 
this  was  a  funeral  gathering.  She  hastened 
on  with  mingled  curiosity  and  anxiety. 
Within  a  circle  of  the  thorny  buffalo-berry 
trees,  under  a  shivering  poplar,  lay  the  life- 
92 


The  Mustering  of  the   Herds 

less  form  of  Ptesanwee,  the  white  buffalo 
cow,  the  old  queen  of  the  Shaeyela  herd. 

Here  all  the  dusky  women  of  the  plains 
had  gathered  to  pay  their  last  respects  to 
their  dead  leader.  Hinpoha  pushed  her 
way  into  the  midst  of  the  throng  for  a  part 
ing  look.  She  joined  in  the  wailing  of  the 
other  bison  women,  and  the  noise  of  their 
mourning  echoed  like  distant  thunder  from 
the  opposite  cliffs  of  the  Shaeyela. 

No  bull  buffalo  was  allowed  to  come  near 
while  the  women  hovered  about  their  dead 
leader.  These  had  to  return  to  their  nur 
series  at  last,  and  then  it  was  that  the  buffalo 
men  approached  in  great  numbers.  The 
sound  of  their  mourning  was  great!  They 
tore  up  the  sod  with  their  hoofs  as  they 
wailed  loudly  for  the  dead. 

The  sun  hovered  over  the  western  hills 
ere  the  gathering  dispersed.  The  dead  was 
left  to  the  silent  night  to  cover,  and  the 
lonely  poplar  sang  a  soft  funeral  song  over 
her. 

Hinpoha  found  her  baby  fast  asleep  when 

she  reached  her  nursery  upon  Willow  Creek. 

The  little  creature  was  fed,  and  played  about 

her   mother,    grazing   in    the    quiet   valley, 

93 


R.ed   Hunters    a^nd   the  Animal   People 

where  none  might  see  the  cradle  of  their 
future  queen. 

At  the  next  mid-day,  Hinpoha  saw  many 
of  the  bison  people  fleeing  by  her  secret 
camp.  She  at  once  suspected  the  neigh 
borhood  of  the  Red  hunters.  "I.  shall  go 
away,  so  that  they  will  not  find  my  teepee 
and  my  baby,"  she  said  to  herself.  Accord 
ingly  she  came  out  and  followed  the  trail  of 
the  fugitives  in  order  to  deceive  the  wild 
man,  but  at  night  she  returned  to  her  nur 
sery. 

Upon  the  Shaeyela  River,  below  the  camp 
of  the  buffalo  people,  the  wild  Red  men  were 
likewise  encamped  in  great  numbers.  Spring 
was  here  at  last,  and  nearly  all  of  the  snow 
had  gone,  even  from  the  gulches  and  deep 
ravines. 

A  joyous  hunting  song  pealed  forth  loudly 
from  the  council-lodge  of  the  Two  Kettle 
band.  The  great  drum  beat  a  prelude  to 
the  announcement  heralded  throughout  the 
camp. 

"Hear  ye,  hear  ye,  warriors!     The  game 

scout  has  come  back  with  the  news  that  the 

south  fork  of  the   Shaeyela  is  full  of  the 

buffalo  people.     It  is  the  will  of  the  council 

94 


The  Mustering   of   the   Herds 

that  the  young  men  should  now  make  the 
great  spring  hunt  of  the  bison.  Fill  your 
quivers  with  good  arrows.  Try  your  bows. 
Heya,  heya,  ha-a-a-a!"  Thus  the  herald 
circled  the  large  encampment. 

"Woo!  woo!"  came  from  the  council- 
lodge — a  soldier-call,  for  the  young  men  to 
saddle  up.  At  the  same  time,  the  familiar 
drum-beat  was  again  heard.  The  old  men, 
the  council  men,  were  now  left  alone  to  per 
form  those  ceremonies  which  were  held  to 
insure  good  hunting. 

The  long-  stemmed  pipe  was  reverently 
lifted  from  the  sacred  ground  which  is  its 
resting-place.  The  chief  medicine-man,  old 
Buffalo  Ghost,  took  it  in  his  sinewy  hands, 
with  the  mouth-piece  foremost.  He  held  it 
toward  heaven,  then  to  the  earth,  and  gave 
the  "  spirit  talk."  Having  ended,  he  lighted 
and  passed  it  around  the  circle  from  left  to 
right.  Again  one  struck  the  drum  and  sang 
in  a  high  minor  key.  All  joined  in  the  re 
frain,  and  two  got  up  and  danced  around  the 
fire.  This  is  done  to  call  the  spirits  of  the 
bison,  and  charm  them  into  a  happy  de 
parture  for  the  spirit  land. 

Meantime,  the  young  warriors  had  mount- 
95 


Red  Hunters  a.nd  the  Animal   People 

ed  their  trained  buffalo-ponies,  and  with  a 
great  crowd  on  foot  were  moving  up  the 
valley  of  the  Shaeyela.  From  every  di 
vide  they  surveyed  the  country  ahead,  hop 
ing  to  find  the  buffalo  in  great  numbers  and 
to  take  them  unawares.  The  chief  hunter 
ascended  a  hill  in  advance  of  the  others. 
"Woo!"  he  called,  and  waved  his  right  hand 
with  the  assurance  of  a  successful  hunt. 

The  warriors  prepared  for  the  charge  just 
as  they  would  prepare  for  an  attack  upon 
the  enemy.  All  preliminary  orders  were 
given.  The  men  were  lined  out  on  three 
sides,  driving  the  herd  toward  the  'river. 
When  the  signal  was  given,  ponies  and  men 
sped  forward  with  loosened  hair  and  flying 
lariat.  The  buffalo  were  compelled  to  run 
toward  the  river,  but  some  refused  to  run, 
while  many  more  broke  through  the  attack 
ing  lines  and  fled  across  the  Shaeyela  and 
into  the  woods.  There  were  some  who 
stood  their  ground  and  formed  an  outward- 
facing  circle  around  the  low  little  buffalo- 
berry-hung  grave.  To  this  group  many  Red 
hunters  came  yelling  and  singing. 

"Hanta,  hanta  yo!"  the  leader  cautioned, 
vainly.  The  first  man  who  ventured  near 


The   Mustering   of  the  Herds 

the  menacing  circle  was  instantly  tossed  upon 
the  horns  of  an  immense  bull.  He  lay  mo 
tionless  where  he  fell. 

Now  the  angry  bison  were  left  alone  for 
the  time,  while  the  hunters  withdrew  to  a 
near-by  hill  for  consultation.  The  signal  of 
distress  had  been  given,  and  soon  the  ridges 
were  black  with  riders.  The  unfortunate 
hunter  and  his  horse  lay  dead  upon  the 
plain ! 

"  It  is  not  the  custom  of  the  buffalo  people 
to  fight  thus.  They  have  been  known  to 
form  a  ring  to  defend  themselves  against 
wolves,  but  against  man — never!"  declared 
the  game  leader.  "  It  is  a  sign  of  which  we 
ought  to  discover  the  meaning." 

"  You  have  heard  their  lowing,"  remarked 
another.  "It  is  their  habit  to  mourn  thus 
when  they  discover  one  of  their  number  ly 
ing  dead." 

Suddenly  the  buffalo  women  started  away 
in  single  file,  the  bulls  following ;  and  walking 
slowly,  without  molestation  from  any,  they 
all  disappeared  in  the  direction  taken  by 
the  fleeing  herd.  The  hunters  now  eagerly 
advanced  to  the  spot  where  lay  dead  the 
white  bison  cow,  the  queen  of  the  buffalo 
97 


Red   Hunters   a.nd  the   Animal   People 

people.  The  strange  action  of  her  follow 
ers  was  explained .  Every  warrior  approach 
ed  the  place  as  if  treading  upon  hallowed 
ground.  They  tied  or  hobbled  their  ponies 
at  some  distance,  and  all  came  with  tobacco 
or  arrows  in  their  hands.  They  reverently 
addressed  the  dead  cow  and  placed  the  to 
bacco  gently  around  her  for  an  offering. 
Thus  strangely  ended  the  first  spring  hunt 
of  that  year  upon  the  Shaeyela,  the  ancient 
home  of  the  buffalo  people,  where  always 
the  buffalo  woman  chief,  the  white  cow,  is 
seen — the  most  sacred  and  honored  animal 
among  the  Sioux! 

The  grass  of  the  Bad  Lands  region  was 
now  spread  in  fresh  green,  all  beaded  and 
porcupined  with  the  early  crocuses.  The 
young  queen  was  well  grown  for  her  age,  and 
could  run  as  well  as  her  mother  for  a  mile  or 
two.  Along  Willow  Creek  she  had  been  made 
to  try  her  speed  many  times  daily. 

"  Come,"  she  signed  to  her,  one  bright  May 
day,  and  they  both  set  out  for  the  forks  of 
the  Shaeyela,  where  once  more  the  buffalo 
people  were  assembled  by  thousands.  Many 
of  the  mothers  had  already  taken  their  chil- 


The  Mustering    of  the   Herds 

dren  back  to  the  herd.  As  Hinpoha  passed 
the  lone  bulls  who  are  wont  to  wander  away 
from  the  rest  for  undisturbed  feeding,  they  all 
turned  to  gaze  at  her  and  her  strange  daugh 
ter.  Each  gave  her  sonorous  greeting,  and 
some  even  followed  after  at  a  distance  in 
wonder  and  admiration. 

When  they  reached  a  small  group  of  buf 
falo  women,  there  was  much  commotion. 
One  of  the  other  mothers  came  forward  to 
challenge  Hinpoha  to  a  friendly  contest, 
while  the  rest  formed  a  ring  around  them, 
evidently  admiring  the  little  calf.  The 
black  eyes  and  hoofs  setting  off  her  creamy 
whiteness  gave  her  a  singularly  picturesque 
appearance. 

After  the  friendly  tussle,  the  mother  and 
daughter  continued  on  their  journey  to  the 
forks  of  the  Shaeyela.  As  they  passed  more 
and  more  of  their  people,  the  ''Moo"  was 
given  continuously,  announcing  the  coming 
of  the  new  queen  of  the  tribe.  When  they 
arrived  at  the  place  of  meeting,  the  excite 
ment  was  great.  Everywhere  buffalo  peo 
ple  were  running  toward  them  to  greet  them 
with  the  "Moo!"  The  little  folks  ran  up 
full  of  curiosity,  turned  large  eyes  and  ears 
99 


R_ed    Hunters    and  the  AnimaJ  People 

on  the  stranger,  and  then  fled  away  with  up 
lifted  tail.  The  big,  shaggy-haired  old  men 
came,  too,  and  regarded  her  gravely.  Hin- 
poha  was  proud  of  her  conspicuous  position ; 
yet  it  was  a  trying  reception,  for  every  kind 
female  caller  felt  obliged  to  offer  her  a  friend 
ly  trial  of  strength.  At  such  times  the  lit 
tle  calf  watched  her  mother  with  excited 
interest. 

The  day  was  warm,  the  air  soft  and  sum 
mer-like.  Whenever  there  is  a  great  gath 
ering  of  the  bison,  there  are  many  contests 
and  dances.  So  it  was  on  this  occasion.  It 
was  their  festival  time,  and  the  rumble  of 
their  voices  was  heard  by  the  other  tribes  of 
the  prairie  a  great  way  off. 

Again  the  herald's  song  pealed  forth  upon 
the  sunshiny  stillness  of  a  May  morning. 
Every  ear  was  turned  to  catch  the  expected 
announcement  of  the  wise  men. 

"Ye  soldier  hunters,"  was  the  summons, 
"come  home  to  the  teyoteepee!"  Many  of 
the  warriors,  wrapped  in  their  robes,  walked 
slowly  toward  the  council-lodge  in  the  mid 
dle  of  the  Indian  encampment. 

"Hear  ye,  men  and  warriors!"  exclaimed 
100 


The  Mustering  of  the  Herds 

the  chief  of  the  teyoteepee,  when  all  were 
met  together.  "Our  game  scout  has  re 
turned  with  the  word  that  upon  the  forks  of 
the  Shaeyela  the  buffalo  people  are  holding 
their  summer  gathering.  Furthermore,  he 
says  that  he  saw  a  young  buffalo  chief  wom 
an — a  white  calf!  In  the  morning  all  the 
hunters  are  commanded  to  make  an  attack 
upon  the  herd.  If  it  be  possible,  we  shall 
capture  the  little  queen. 

"Hear  ye,  hear  ye!  We  shall  dance  the 
great  buffalo  -  dance  to  -  night !  The  Great 
Mystery  is  good  to  us.  Few  men  are  so 
favored  as  to  see  the  queen  of  the  buffalo 
people  even  once  in  a  lifetime. 

"  Eyuha  nahon  po !"  he  continued,  "  heark 
en  to  the  legend  that  is  told  by  the  old  men. 
The  buffalo  chief  woman  is  the  noblest  of  all 
animals — the  most  beloved  of  her  people. 
Where  she  is,  there  is  the  greatest  gathering 
of  her  tribe — there  is  plenty  for  the  Indian! 
They  who  see  her  shall  be  fortunate  in  hunt 
ing  and  in  war.  If  she  be  captured,  the  peo 
ple  who  take  her  need  never  go  hungry. 
When  the  bison  is  scarce,  the  exhibition  of  her 
robe  in  the  buffalo-dance  will  bring  back 
many  to  the  neighborhood! 
101 


Red   Hunters    <vnd   the   Animal   People 

"  To-morrow  we  will  make  a  great  hunt. 
Be  strong  of  heart,  for  her  people  will  not 
flee,  as  is  their  wont,  but  will  fight  for  her!" 

"Ho,  ho!  hi,  hi!"  replied  all  the  warriors. 

The  buffalo  were  now  holding  their  sum 
mer  feasts  and  dances  upon  the  Shaeyela 
River — the  tricky  Shaeyela,  who,  like  her 
sister,  the  Big  Muddy,  tears  up  her  banks 
madly  every  spring  freshet,  thus  changing 
her  bed  continually.  The  little  hills  define 
it  abruptly,  and  the  tributary  creeks  are 
indicated  by  a  few  dwarf  pines  and  cedars, 
peeping  forth  like  bears  from  the  gulches. 
Upon  the  horizon  the  Bad  Lands  stand  out 
in  bold  relief,  their  ruined  pyramids  and 
columns  bespeaking  the  power  of  the  Great 
Mystery. 

Here  at  the  forks  the  poplar-trees  and 
buffalo-berry-bushes  glistened  in  fresh  foli 
age,  and  the  deep-yellow  flowers  of  the  wild 
bull-currant  exhaled  their  musky  odor.  There 
was  a  wide,  green  plain  for  the  buffalo  peo 
ple  to  summer  in,  and  many  had  come  to 
see  their  baby  queen,  for  the  white  bison 
was  always  found  in  the  midst  of  the  great 
est  gathering  of  her  people.  No  chief  buffalo 
woman  was  ever  seen  with  a  little  band. 
102 


The   Mustering  of  the   Herds 

The  morning  was  good;  the  sun  wore  a 
broad  smile,  and  his  children  upon  the 
Shaeyela  River,  both  bison  and  wild  Red 
men,  were  happy  in  their  own  fashion.  The 
little  fires  were  sportively  burning  outside  of 
each  teepee,  where  the  morning  meal  had 
been  prepared.  It  had  been  decreed  by  the 
council  that  the  warriors  should  paint,  after 
the  custom  of  warfare,  when  they  attacked 
the  buffalo  chief  woman  and  her  people  upon 
the  forks  of  the  Shaeyela. 

Upon  the  slope  of  a  long  ridge  the  hunters 
gathered.  Their  dusky  faces  and  naked 
bodies  were  extravagantly  painted;  their 
locks  fantastically  dressed;  even  the  ponies 
were  decorated.  Upon  the  green  plain  be 
low  the  bison  were  quietlv  Brazing,  and  in 
the  very  centre  of  the  host  the  little  queen 
frisked  about  her  mother.  It  was  fully  four 
arrow-flights  distant  from  the  outer  edge  of 
the  throng,  and  sentinel  bulls  were  posted 
still  farther  out,  in  precaution  for  her  safety. 

The  Indians  overlooking  the  immense  herd 
had  already  pointed  out  the  white  calf  in 
awe-struck  whispers.  To  them  she  looked 
like  an  earth-visiting  spirit  in  her  mysterious 
whiteness.  There  were  several  thousand 
103 


R.ed   Hunters  a.nd  the  Animal   People 

pairs  of  horns  against  their  few  hundred 
warriors,  yet  they  knew  that  if  they  should 
succeed  in  capturing  this  treasure,  the  story 
would  be  told  of  them  for  generations  to 
come.  It  was  sufficient  honor  for  the  risk 
of  a  brave  man's  life. 

"Hukahay!  hukahay!"  came  the  signal. 
Down  the  slope  they  sped  to  the  attack 
with  all  the  spirit  and  intrepidity  of  the  gray 
wolf.  ' '  Woo !  woo !"  came  from  every  throat 
in  a  hoarse  shout.  The  earth  under  their 
ponies'  feet  fairly  trembled. 

The  buffalo  bull  sentinels  instantly  gave 
the  alarm  and  started  back  in  the  direction  of 
the  main  body.  A  cloud  of  dust  arose  toward 
the  sun  as  the  mighty  gathering  was  set  in 
motion.  Deadly  arrows  flew  like  winged 
things,  and  the  seating  of  thousands  of  hoofs 
made  a  noise  like  thunder.  Yet  the  buffalo 
people  would  not  break  the  circle  around  the 
white  calf,  and  for  many  minutes  no  Red 
man  could  penetrate  it. 

At  last  old  Zuya,  a  warrior  of  note,  came 
swiftly  to  the  front  upon  his  war-steed.  He 
held  high  above  his  head  a  blazing  torch, 
and  the  panic-stricken  bison  fled  before  him 
in  every  direction.  Close  behind  him  came 
104 


The  Mustering  of  the  Herds 

Zuya's  young  son,  Unspeshnee,  with  a  long 
lariat  coiled  in  his  hand,  and  the  two  fol 
lowed  hard  upon  the  fleeing  buffalo  people. 
* '  Wa  -  wa  -  wa  -  wa !"  came  forth  from 
hundreds  of  throats,  like  the  rolling  of 
many  stones  upon  new  ice.  "Unspeshnee! 
Unspeshnee  has  lassoed  the  buffalo  chief 
woman!" 

Amid  a  great  gathering  of  curious  people 
stood  the  white  calf,  wailing  continually,  and 
a  solemn  rejoicing  pervaded  the  camp  of 
the  Red  hunters.  Already  the  ceremonies 
were  in  progress  to  celebrate  this  event. 

"  It  is  the  will  of  the  Great  Mystery,"  said 
they,  * '  to  recall  the  spirit  of  the  white  chief. 
We  shall  preserve  her  robe,  the  token  of 
plenty  and  good-fortune!  We  shall  never 
be  hungry  henceforth  for  the  flesh  of  her 
nation.  This  robe  shall  be  handed  down 
from  generation  to  generation,  and  wherever 
it  is  found  there  shall  be  abundance  of  meat 
for  the  Indian." 


The    Sky  Warrior 


THE  all-night  rain  had  ceased,  and  day 
light  appeared  once  more  over  the  east 
ern  buttes.  Hooyah  looked  about  her,  anx 
iously  scanning  the  gray  dusk  of  morning  for 
a  glimpse  of  her  mate,  the  while  she  spread 
her  long  pinions  over  three  rollicking  and 
mischievous  youngsters  as  any  eagle  woman 
ever  brooded.  Her  piercing  gaze  was  direct 
ed  oftenest  toward  the  lone  pine  —  his  fa 
vorite  sleeping-tree.  Surely  it  was  time  for 
him  to  call  her  out  on  the  usual  morning 
hunt. 

The  Eagle's  Nest  butte  was  well  known  to 
the  wild  hunters  of  that  region,  since  it 
could  be  seen  from  a  great  distance  and  by 
many  approaches.  Its  overhanging  sides 
were  all  but  inaccessible,  and  from  the  level 
summit  could  be  discerned  all  the  land 
marks  of  the  Bad  Lands  in  a  circuit  of 
106 


The  Sky  Warrior 

seventy-five  miles.  The  course  of  the  Make- 
zeta,  the  Smoking  Earth  River,  lay  unrolled 
like  a  map  beneath  that  eyrie.  Hither  the 
bighorn,  the  grizzly,  and  others  of  the  ani 
mal  tribes  had  from  time  to  time  betaken 
themselves,  some  seeking  a  night's  refuge 
and  others  a  permanent  dwelling-place.  For 
many  years,  however,  it  had  been  well  un 
derstood  that  this  was  the  chosen  home  of 
Wambelee,  the  eagle,  whom  it  is  not  well  to 
molest. 

Doubtless  there  have  been  tragedies  enact 
ed  upon  this  imposing  summit.  There  is 
even  a  tradition  among  the  wild  Red  men 
that  the  supremacy  upon  old  Eagle's  Nest 
has  cost  many  lives,  and  for  this  reason  it  is 
held  to  be  a  mysterious  and  hallowed  place. 
Certainly  the  tribes  of  Wild  Land  had  cause 
to  desire  and  even  to  fight  for  its  pos 
session. 

Suddenly  there  came  to  Hooyah's  ears  the 
whirring  sound  that  announced  the  near  ap 
proach  of  her  master.  In  the  wink  of  an  eye 
he  was  at  her  side. 

"  Quick,  quick!  We  must  be  off !  I  have 
found  a  doe  with  two  small  fawns.  I  could 
have  taken  one  fawn,  but  we  shall  have  more 
107 


R.ed   Hunters  a.nd  the   AnimaJ  People 

meat  if  you  are  there  to  take  the  other,"  he 
signalled  to  her. 

Hooyah  simply  stepped  aside  and  stretched 
herself  thoroughly,  as  if  to  say,  "Go,  and  I 
will  follow." 

Wambelee  arose  clumsily  at  the  start,  but 
as  he  gained  in  speed  and  balance  he  floated 
away  in  mid-air  like  a  mystic  cloud.  Hoo 
yah  followed  within  hailing  distance,  and 
they  kept  the  same  relative  positions  until 
they  reached  Fishtail  Gulch.  It  is  well 
known  to  the  Red  hunters  that  such  is  the 
custom  of  the  bear,  coyote,  eagle,  raven  and 
gray  wolf,  except  when  they  travel  in  bands. 
The  rule  is  a  good  one,  since  the  sought-for 
prey  is  less  likely  to  take  alarm  when  only 
one  hunter  is  in  sight,  and  then,  in  case  of 
flight,  the  second  pursuer,  who  is  invisible, 
may  have  a  better  chance  to  make  the  capt 
ure,  especially  should  the  fleeing  one  double 
on  his  track.  He  is  certain  to  be  bewildered 
and  disheartened  by  the  sudden,  unexpected 
reinforcement  of  the  foe. 

Wambelee  swung  up  on  one  of  the  adjacent 

buttes  to  spy  out  possible  danger,  while  his 

mate  was  balancing  herself  away  up  in  the 

ether,  just  over  the  black-tail  mother  with 

108 


The  Sky  Warrior 

her  twin  fawns.  Suddenly  he  arose  in  a  long 
spiral  and  ascended  to  the  height  of  Hooyah, 
and  there  the  two  plotted  their  assault  upon 
the  innocents,  at  the  same  time  viewing  the 
secret  movements  of  every  other  hunter. 

It  is  the  accepted  usage  of  Wild  Land  that 
no  one  may  wisely  leave  his  tracks  uncov 
ered  while  he  himself  is  on  the  trail  of  an 
other,  for  many  have  been  seized  while  en 
joying  the  prize.  Even  the  lordly  eagle  has 
been  caught  by  the  wolf,  the  wild-cat,  or  by 
the  wild*  man  while  feasting,  and  in  his  glut 
tony  has  become  an  easy  prey  to  the  least  of 
hunters.  Therefore  it  behooved  Wambelee 
to  be  watchful  and  very  cautious. 

"Ho,  Opagela,  koowah  yay  yo-o-o!"  This 
was  the  call  of  Matoska,  a  famous  hunter  of 
the  Sioux,  at  the  door  of  his  friend's  lodge  in 
the  camp  on  the  Smoking  Earth  River. 
' '  Come  out,  friend ;  it  is  almost  day  and  my 
dream  has  been  good.  The  game  is  plenti 
ful;  but  you  will  need  to  be  on  your  guard, 
for  the  tracks  of  the  grizzly  hereabout  are  as 
many  as  I  have  ever  seen  the  O  jib  way 
trails." 

"Hun,  hun,  hay!"  exclaimed  the  other, 
109 


R.ed   Hunters  a^nd  the  Animal  People 

good-humoredly,  as  he  pushed  aside  the  tri 
angular  door-flap  and  appeared  wrapped  in 
his  blanket.  "  It  is  always  thus.  When  the 
hunting  is  poor,  you  will  not  be  disturbed,  but 
when  you  are  in  a  region  of  much  game,  all 
other  hunters  are  there  as  well!  It  is  true 
that  they  are  usually  agreeable  except  two 
only — Mato,  the  grizzly,  and  man  himself. 
These  two  are  always  looking  for  trouble!" 

Opagela  was  likewise  noted  for  his  skill  in 
hunting,  and  especially  for  the  number  of 
eagles  that  he  had  caught.  This  good- 
fortune  had  gained  him  many  ponies,  for 
eagles'  feathers  are  always  in  demand.  Few 
men  so  well  understand  the  secrets  of  this 
bird.  His  friend  was  doubtless  expert  in 
wood-craft,  but  in  this  particular  he  could 
not  claim  to  be  the  equal  of  Opagela. 

"Come,  let  us  hasten!  We  must  be  off 
before  any  other  wild  hunter  can  gain  the 
advantage.  We  shall  appear  foolish  to 
them  if  we  are  seen  running  about  in  full 
view,"  Matoska  continued,  as  he  adjusted 
the  thongs  of  his  moccasins. 

Both  men  soon  disappeared  in  the  gray 
mists  of  the  morning.  They  ran  noiselessly 
side  by  side,  scarcely  uttering  a  word,  up 
no 


The  Sky  Warrior 

and  along  the  bluffs  of  the  Smoking  Earth 
River.  They  could  see  the  white  vapor  or 
breath  of  the  bison  hanging  in  the  air  at  a 
distance,  and  black  masses  of  the  animals 
were  visible  here  and  there  upon  the  plains. 
But  they  did  not  turn  aside,  for  they  were 
in  search  of  other  game.  The  Eagle's  Nest 
butte  loomed  up  to  their  right,  its  bare  walls 
towering  grandly  above  the  surrounding 
country,  and  the  big  timber  lay  hidden  be 
low  in  the  fog  that  still  clung  about  the 
river. 

"Ho!"  Opagela  exclaimed,  presently,  to 
his  companion,  in  an  undertone.  "  There  is 
a  hunter  from  above  descending." 

Both  stood  still  in  their  tracks  like  petri 
fied  men.  "Whir-r-r!"  came  like  the  sound 
of  a  coming  shower. 

"Ugh,  it  is  he!"  Opagela  said  again,  in  a 
whisper,  and  made  a  motion  with  his  lips. 

As  the  great  bird,  the  giant  hunter  of  the 
air,  swooped  down  into  the  gulch,  a  doe  fled 
forth  from  it  and  ran  swiftly  over  the  little 
divide.  There  was  bawling  and  the  sound 
of  struggle  just  over  the  banks  of  the  creek, 
where  the  eagle  had  disappeared. 

"Run,  friend,  run!  Let  us  see  him  use 
in 


Red   Hunters    and  the  Animal   People 

his  knife  upon  the  fawn,"  urged  Matoska, 
and  he  started  over  the  knoll  at  a  good  gait. 
The  other  followed  as  if  reluctantly. 

The  little  gulch  was  a  natural  enclosure 
formed  by  a  sudden  turn  of  the  creek,  and 
fenced  with  a  thorny  thicket  of  wild  plum 
and  buffalo-berry  bushes.  Here  they  saw 
Wambelee  in  the  open,  firmly  fastened  upon 
the  back  of  a  struggling  fawn.  Hooyah  had 
missed  her  quarry,  which  took  refuge  in  the 
plum  grove. 

" Shoot!  shoot!"  whispered  Matoska,  at 
the  same  time  drawing  forth  an  arrow. 

"No,  no;  I  recognize  friends.  This  is  the 
old  pair  who  have  dwelt  for  many  years  upon 
the  Eagle's  Nest  butte."  There  was  a  seri 
ous  expression  upon  the  hunter's  face  as  he 
spoke. 

At  this  moment  the  eagle  turned  toward 
them.  From  his  neck  hung  a  single  bear's 
claw,  fastened  by  a  leather  thong. 

"Yes,  it  is  he.  Long  ago  he  saved  my 
life,  and  we  are  friends.  I  shall  tell  you 
about  it,"  Opagela  said  at  last,  and  the  two 
friends  sat  down  side  by  side  at  the  edge  of 
the  plum-bushes. 

"Many  winters  ago,"  began  Opagela,  "I 

112 


The  Sky  Warrior 

was  shot  through  the  knee  in  a  battle  with 
the  Utes,  a  little  west  of  the  Black  Hills. 
My  friends  carried  me  with  them  as  far  as  the 
creek  which  is  now  called  the  Wounded 
Knee,  and  there  we  were  overtaken  by  a 
Crow  war-party.  Our  party  had  a  running 
fight  with  them  and  were  compelled  to  re 
treat  in  haste.  I  begged  my  friends  to 
leave  me  on  the  trail,  for  I  preferred  to  die 
fighting  rather  than  from  the  effects  of  my 
wound.  They  did  so,  but  before  they  reach 
ed  me  the  Crow  warriors  withdrew. 

"There  I  lay  without  food  or  water  for 
four  days.  I  was  all  skin  and  bones.  My 
thoughts  were  already  in  the  spirit  land,  and 
I  seemed  to  see  about  me  my  relatives  who 
had  died. 

"One  morning  my  mind  was  clear,  and 
once  more  I  realized  my  surroundings.  I 
had  crawled  into  the  shade  of  a  little  grove 
of  plum -bushes.  I  gazed  out  upon  the  lofty 
buttes  and  the  plains  between  where  we  had 
so  often  camped  in  happiness  and  plenty. 
It  seemed  hard  to  starve  in  the  midst  of  such 
abundance. 

"A  few  paces  away  I  saw  a  doe  with  two 
fawns.  They  were  fat  and  tempting,  but  I 

"3 


R_ed    Hunters    a.nd   the   Animal    People 

had  no  strength  to  shoot.  Then  I  felt  that  I 
was  doomed  to  die,  and,  indeed,  believed  that 
I  was  already  half  spirit  and  could  talk  with 
spirits.  I  held  out  my  hand  to  the  Great 
Mystery  and  said: 

"Is  this  the  end?  Then,  Great  Father,  I 
am  resigned.  Let  none  disturb  me,  for  I 
would  die  in  peace. 

"At  this  moment  the  doe  snorted  and 
sprang  directly  over  me.  Alas!  one  of  her 
little  ones  was  caught  before  it  could  plunge 
into  the  thicket.  It  was  seized  by  an  im 
mense  eagle. 

"The  pretty  little  creature  screamed  and 
bawled  like  a  baby,  and  my  heart  was  with 
her  in  her  death-pangs,  although  I  was  per 
ishing  for  meat.  I  lay  quite  still  and  breath 
ed  softly.  I  slyly  closed  my  eyes  when  the 
eagle  seemed  about  to  look  in  my  direction. 
He  appeared  to  be  a  very  warlike,  full-grown 
bird,  with  splendid  plumage. 

"He  dressed  his  meat  a  few  paces  from 
me.  I  could  smell  the  rich  odor  of  the 
savory  venison,  and  it  made  me  desperate. 
I  wanted  to  live  now.  But  it  was  his  game. 
I  was  a  wounded,  helpless,  dying  man — he  a 
strong,  warlike  hunter.  I  could  only  beg  a 
114 


The    Sky   Warrior 

piece  of  his  meat,  but  it  was  not  the  time  for 
me  to  do  so  until  he  had  eaten  his  fill. 

''The  zest  with  which  he  partook  of  his 
meal  made  me  chew  while  he  tore  off  pieces 
of  the  meat,  and  swallow  whenever  he 
swallowed  a  savory  morsel.  At  last  I  could 
not  endure  it  any  longer. 

"'Ho,  kola!'  I  said,  feebly. 

"The  sky  warrior  lifted  his  noble  head 
with  the  mien  of  a  great  chief.  At  first  he 
did  not  discover  where  the  voice  came  from, 
but,  nevertheless,  he  made  a  show  of  indig 
nation  and  surprise. 

"Again  I  said,  almost  in  a  whisper,  'Ho, 
kola,  it  is  time  you  should  cheer  a  dying 
warrior's  heart.' 

"  He  saw  me.  '  Hush-h-h!'  he  sighed,  and 
released  his  great  talons  from  the  body  of 
the  fawn. 

"  My  mind  was  clear  now,  and  the  sight  of 
meat  seemed  to  give  me  strength.  I  took 
my  long  knife  in  one  hand  and  my  war-club 
in  the  other,  and  I  rose  and  hopped  towards 
him.  He  tried  to  fly,  but  could  not.  This 
is  his  greatest  weakness — that  when  he  kills 
big  game  he  surfeits  himself  and  is  sometimes 
unable  to  fly  for  half  a  day  or  longer.  As 


R_ed   Hunters    a.nd  the  Animal   People 

the  eagle  is  not  a  good  walker,  he  could  not 
get  away  from  me.  All  his  dignity  disap 
peared.  Helpless  as  a  woman,  he  lay  before 
me  with  outstretched  wings. 

"  I  had  no  wish  to  harm  him  who  had  pre 
served  my  life.  I  lassoed  him  with  my  lariat 
and  fastened  him  to  a  plum-tree  while  I  ate 
of  the  meat.  It  was  tender  and  luscious,  and 
my  strength  returned  to  me  even  as  I  ate. 

"  I  could  not  walk,  so  Wambelee  and  I 
camped  together,  for  I  did  not  care  to  be 
alone.  Little  by  little  we  became  friends. 
On  the  second  day  his  wife  came  in  search 
of  him.  When  she  found  him  a  captive  she 
scolded  violently,  perhaps  him  alone,  per 
haps  me,  or  both  of  us. 

"  The  next  time  she  came  prepared  to  make 
war  upon  me  in  order  to  release  her  husband. 
She  appeared  high  up,  floating  among  the 
clouds ;  then  suddenly  gave  a  scream,woman- 
like,  and  shot  down  with  all  the  fierceness 
of  a  warrior,  coming  directly  toward  me. 

"  I  was  getting  strong  now,  and  I  shook 
my  bow  over  my  head  at  her.  Then  she 
swung  upward  within  a  few  bows'  length,  so 
that  I  could  feel  the  wind  of  her  attack. 

"After  she  had  done  this  several  times, 
116 


The    Sky  Warrior 

she  perched  upon  a  near-by  butte  and 
watched.  She  did  everything  in  her  power 
to  make  her  captive  husband's  heart  strong. 
Now  and  then  she  would  sail  slowly  over  our 
heads,  coaxing,  scolding,  and  apparently 
having  a  loving,  conjugal  talk  with  him. 

"At  last  I  sat  beside  her  mate  and  gave 
him  some  meat,  which  he  took  from  my  hand. 
She  saw  this  feast  of  two  warrior  -  friends, 
and  came  within  a  few  paces  of  us.  I  threw 
her  a  piece  of  the  venison,  which  she  took, 
and  ate  of  it. 

"  Our  meat  was  now  gone,  and  we  moved 
nearer  to  the  stream.  I  awoke  early  in  the 
morning.  Wambelee  was  uneasy,  and  stared 
continually  into  the  gray  dusk.  I  looked  in 
the  same  direction,  and  I  saw  four  black- tail 
deer  approaching  the  water  to  drink.  I  had 
tied  one  end  of  Wambelee' s  lariat  to  a  young 
sapling,  and  let  him  sit  by  me,  concealed 
under  the  bushes.  He  had  a  long  lariat. 
When  the  deer  were  almost  upon  us,  I  took 
my  sharpest  arrow  and  shot  the  buck  deer. 
At  the  same  time  Wambelee  secured  a  fawn. 
Now  we  were  rich,  for  we  had  all  the  meat 
we  wanted! 

"  When  we  first  moved  our  camp,  the  eagle 
117 


R.ed   Hunters    a.i\d  the   AnimaJ   People 

woman  did  not  like  it,  because  she  did  not 
understand.  But  again  she  came  every  day 
and  got  rations  for  herself  and  her  eaglets 
on  the  nest.  It  was  a  day's  run  for  a  warrior 
from  the  Eagle's  Nest  butte  to  the  place 
where  we  were  upon  the  Wounded  Knee. 

"  I  was  now  strong  and  able  to  walk  a 
short  distance.  Wambelee  and  Hooyah  had 
become  my  good  friends.  They  feared  me 
no  longer.  One  day  I  said  to  him : 

"'My  friend,  you  have  saved  my  life.  I 
am  strong  again,  and  I  shall  return  to  my 
people.  You  also  must  go  back  to  your 
children.  I  have  three  in  my  lodge,  and  you 
should  have  as  many.  See,  I  will  give  you 
a  necklace — a  brave's  necklace — before  you 
go.' 

"I  took  one  claw  from  my  necklace  of 
bears'  claws,  and  tied  it  about  his  neck  with 
a  leather  thong.  I  also  cut  a  little  figure  of 
a  man  out  of  a  deer's  hoof,  and  tied  it  to  the 
eagle  woman's  neck. 

" '  You  have  been  a  faithful  and  brave  wife 
to  my  friend  Wambelee,'  I  said  to  her.  '  You 
shall  have  this  for  a  token  from  his  friend.' 

"  Then  I  released  Wambelee.  He  stepped 
aside,  but  showed  no  sign  of  going.  The 
118 


The    Sky   Warrior 

eagle  woman  simply  busied  herself  with 
cutting  out  a  piece  of  venison  to  take  to  her 
hungry  children. 

'"I  see  that  you  are  true  friends.  I  will 
take  two  feathers  from  each  of  you/  I  said. 

"  I  took  two  feathers  from  each  and  stuck 
them  in  my  head.  The  eagle  woman  rose 
with  the  meat,  but  Wambelee  still  stood  by 
me.  I  said,  '  Go,  friend,  it  is  time,'  and  re 
luctantly  he  rose  and  followed  her. 

"When  they  had  left  me  it  was  lonely, 
and  I  could  not  stay.  I  took  my  lariat  and 
my  weapons  and  walked  slowly  up  the  creek, 
which  was  then  called  Blacktail  Creek. 
From  that  day  it  has  been  known  as  the 
Wounded  Knee. 

11  Before  sunset,  Wambelee  came  back  to 
see  where  I  was.  I  was  compelled  to  travel 
very  slowly,  and  they  watched  and  followed 
me  from  day  to  day  until  I  reached  home. 
There  I  was  as  one  returned  from  the  dead. 

"  Nor  is  this  all.  In  my  journeyings  these 
two  have  many  times  come  near  me.  I  have 
a  signal-call  for  them,  and  they  have  one  for 
me.  They  have  been  my  guide  to  game, 
and  I  have  shared  my  game  with  them." 

Opagela  thus  ended  his  story.  Matoska 
119 


, 
: 


FLed   Hunters   a.f\d   the   Anirnsvl   People 

had  listened  with  an  attentive  ear  and  a 
respect  that  bordered  upon  reverence. 

"It  is  well,  friend,"  he  said,  finally,  with 
marked  significance. 

The  two  old  eagles  had  busied  themselves 
meanwhile  with  their  game,  eating  a  part 
and  preparing  part  to  take  to  their  chil 
dren.  They  now  showed  signs  of  age.  Their 
coats  were  of  a  brownish  color,  and  their 
tail-feathers  creamy  white. 

Opagela  filled  his  pipe  and  held  it  toward 
them  in  token  of  his  good  wishes.  Then  he 
offered  it  to  his  companion. 

"We  shall  smoke,"  he  said,  "to  their  long 
life  and  success  in  hunting."  Matoska  si 
lently  nodded  assent. 

"And  how  is  it,  friend,  that  you  kill  so 
many  eagles?"  he  asked,  at  last. 

"I  have  never  killed  one,"  said  Opagela. 
"  I  have  caught  many,  but  without  harm  to 
them.  I  take  several  of  the  tail-feathers  and 
let  them  go.  Because  I  have  always  many 
eagle  feathers,  the  warriors  think  that  I  kill 
them. 

"Sinkpay  both  captures  and  kills  them," 
he  continued.  "He  makes  a  fish  out  of  a 
water-soaked  log.  He  whittles  it  to  the 
120 


The    Sky  Warrior 

shape  of  a  fish,  puts  a  weight  on  it,  and  ties 
it  to  a  long  rope  which  he  holds  from  the 
shore  of  a  certain  lake.  You  know  the  eagle 
is  a  good  fisherman,  and  when  he  sees  from 
a  great  height  the  make-believe  fish  of  Sink- 
pay,  he  drops  down  very  swiftly  and  buries 
his  claws  deeply  in  the  spongy  wood.  Then 
Sinkpay  pulls  this  wooden  fish  to  shpre  with 
the  eagle  clinging  to  it,  because  he  can 
not  pull  out  his  long,  crooked  talons.  Al 
ways  his  greed  is  his  destruction,"  concluded 
the  hunter. 

"And  how  do  you  catch  yours?"  quoth 
Matoska. 

"  Upon  a  hill  frequented  by  eagles,  I  dig 
a  hole  and  lie  in  it,  covered  with  brush,  and 
holding  up  a  freshly  killed  rabbit.  The  eagle 
sees  the  rabbit  a  great  way  off,  and  he  will 
immediately  shoot  down  and  seize  it.  I 
catch  him  by  the  leg  and  pull  him  down  into 
the  hole.  There  I  tie  his  feet  and  pull  out 
several  of  his  tail-feathers. 

"You  will  never  catch  an  eagle  twice  with 
the  same  trick.  My  old  friends  know  all 
about  it,  and  delight  to  play  with  me  by 
tearing  the  skin  of  the  bait  while  hovering 
out  of  reach." 

9  121 


R.ed  Hunters  a.nd  the   Animal   People 

"And  how  do  you  recognize  those  two  old 
eagles?"  again  asked  Matoska. 

"  I  know  them  as  well  as  you  know  one 
man  from  another.  You  cannot  doubt  me, 
for  you  see  their  necklaces. 

"  I  have  kept  this  matter  sacred  and  secret 
for  many  years.  It  is  not  well  to  talk  of  the 
favors  of  the  Great  Mystery.  But  you  have 
seen  my  friend  the  sky  warrior  and  his  wife, 
therefore  I  told  it  to  you.  You  will  not 
speak  of  it  ?"  the  old  hunter  asked  his  friend, 
who  nodded  gravely.  The  two  old  eagles, 
laden  with  their  prey,  flew  heavily  away  in 
the  direction  of  the  Eagle's  Nest. 


A  Founder  of  Ten  Towns 


UPON  a  grassy  plateau,  overlooking  the 
flats  of  the  Owl  River,  was  spread  out 
Pezpeza's  town.  The  borders  of  the  table 
land  were  defined  by  the  river's  bed,  and  it 
was  sufficiently  high  for  the  little  inhabi 
tants  to  command  the  valley  both  up  and 
down  for  a  considerable  distance.  Shungela 
Pahah,  or  Fox  Ridge,  stretched  upward  on 
the  horizon,  and  the  rough  country  back  of  it 
formed  many  ravines  and  gulches  for  the  sol 
itary  habitations  of  wolves  and  foxes. 

No  prettier  site  could  be  imagined  for  a 
town  of  the  prairie-dog  people,  among  whom 
there  is  no  more  enterprising  frontiersman 
than  Pezpeza.  Although  it  was  situated  in 
plain  view  of  one  of  the  large  summer  camps 
of  the  wild  Sioux,  the  little  people  had  been 
left  unmolested.  The  wild  men  lived  then 
in  the  midst  of  the  greatest  game  region  of 
123 


Red   Hunters  a.nd  the   AnimaJ   People 

the  Dakotas,  and,  besides,  they  had  always 
looked  upon  the  little  mound-builders  as 
having  once  been  real  people  like  them 
selves. 

All  over  the  plateau,  which  was  semicir 
cular  in  form,  were  scattered  hundreds  of 
mounds,  and  on  that  particular  morning, 
when  the  early  Sioux  hunter  rode  by  upon 
his  favorite  pony,  every  house  was  alive 
with  the  inhabitants.  Upon  the  mounds  of 
the  old  deserted  houses  stood  the  faithful 
and  good  neighbor,  Pezpeza  ta  ayanpahalah, 
Pezpeza's  herald,  the  owl;  for  if  any  house  is 
left  vacant,  he  immediately  occupies  it. 
Here  and  there,  upon  a  sun-baked  mound, 
lay  coiled  the  other  neighbor,  Sintayhadah, 
the  rattlesnake. 

The  herald  had  announced  the  coming  of 
the  wild  Red  man  upon  his  hunting  pony; 
therefore  every  prairie-dog  had  repaired  to 
the  top  of  the  mound  beside  his  dwelling. 
Some  stood  upon  their  hind -legs,  that  they 
might  better  see  for  themselves  the  approach 
ing  danger,  and  from  this  place  of  safety  they 
all  shrilly  scolded  the  intruders;  while  the 
little  herald,  who  had  done  his  duty  and  once 
more  fulfilled  his  unspoken  contract  with 
124 


A  Founder  of  Ten   Towns 

his  hosts  to  be  their  scout  and  crier,  perched 
calmly  upon  a  chosen  mound  and  made  his 
observations. 

In  the  middle  of  the  town,  upon  a  large 
mound,  there  stood  an  unusually  large  dog. 
When  the  warning  was  given,  he  had  slowly 
dragged  himself  outside.  His  short,  thick 
fur  was  much  yellower  than  that  of  the 
others,  a  sign  of  advancing  age;  and  while 
the  citizens  were  noisy  in  their  protests,  he 
alone  was  silent.  It  was  Pezpeza,  the  found 
er  of  this  town  and  of  many  another,  the 
experienced  traveller.  His  old  friend,  the 
faithful  herald,  who  had  just  given  warning, 
perched  not  far  away.  These  two  had  jour 
neyed  together  and  shared  each  other's  hard 
ships,  but  Pezpeza  was  the  prime  mover  in 
it  all,  and  there  was  none  wiser  than  he 
among  his  people. 

Pezpeza' s  biographer  and  interpreter  tells 
thus  of  his  wonderful  frontier  life  and  ad 
ventures. 

Pezpeza  was  one  of  many  children  of  an 
old  couple  who  lived  upon  the  Missouri  River 
bottoms.  He  had  learned  while  yet  small 
that  the  little  prairie-owl  was  their  very 
good  neighbor  and  friend.  He  had  repaired 
125 


R-ed   Hunters    and   the   Anima.1  People 

and  occupied  one  of  their  abandoned  houses. 
It  was  generally  understood  by  the  little 
mound -builders  that  this  quiet,  unassuming 
bird  notifies  them  of  approaching  danger; 
and,  having  no  bad  habits,  the  prairie-dogs 
had  tacitly  accepted  them  as  desirable  and 
useful  townsfolk.  The  owl,  for  his  part,  finds 
a  more  convenient  home  and  better  food  in 
the  towns  than  he  could  possibly  find  else 
where,  for  there  are  plants  peculiar  to  the 
situation  which  attract  certain  insects,  mice, 
and  birds,  and  these  in  turn  furnish  food  for 
the  owls. 

Their  common  neighbor,  the  rattlesnake, 
lay  at  times  under  a  strong  suspicion  of 
treachery,  and  was  not  liked  any  too  well  by 
the  other  two.  However,  the  canny  and 
cold-hearted  snake  had  proved  his  useful 
ness  beyond  any  doubt,  and  was  accepted 
under  strict  and  well-understood  conditions. 
He  was  like  the  negro  in  the  South — he  was 
permitted  to  dwell  in  the  same  town,  but  he 
must  not  associate  with  the  other  two  upon 
equal  terms.  It  is  clear  that  the  dog  and 
the  owl  together  could  whip  and  terrorize 
the  snake  and  force  him  to  leave  the  prem 
ises  at  any  time  if  they  felt  so  disposed,  but 
126 


A  Founder  of  Ten  Towns 

there  is  a  sufficient  reason  for  allowing  him 
to  remain.  The  wolf,  coyote,  fox,  swift,  and 
badger,  all  enemies  of  the  little  mound- 
builders,  will  not  linger  long  in  the  neigh 
borhood  of  rattlesnakes,  and  this  is  equally 
true  of  the  Red  hunter.  The  coyote  and 
badger  could  easily  lie  flat  behind  the  mound 
and  spring  upon  the  prairie-dog  when  he 
comes  out  of  his  hole.  The  Sioux  boy  could 
do  the  same  with  his  horse-hair  noose.  But 
these  wild  hunters,  with  full  knowledge  of 
the  deadly  rattlesnake,  dare  not  expose 
themselves  in  such  a  fashion.  The  snake, 
on  his  side,  gets  his  food  much  easier  there 
than  anywhere  else,  since  all  kinds  of  small 
birds  come  there  for  seeds.  Further,  his 
greatest  enemies  are  certain  large  birds  which 
do  not  fear  his  poison,  but  swoop  down, 
seize  him,  and  eat  him  in  mid-air.  From 
this  danger  he  is  safer  in  a  dog-town  than 
elsewhere,  owing  to  the  multitude  of  holes, 
which  are  ingeniously  dug  upward  and  off  at 
one  side  from  the  main  burrow,  and  are  much 
better  than  the  snake  can  provide  for  him 
self. 

Pezpeza  was  like  all  the  young  people  of 
his  tribe.     He  loved  play,  but  never  played 
127 


Red   Hunters  and  the   Animal   People 

with  the  snake  young  people — on  the  con 
trary,  he  would  stand  at  a  safe  distance  and 
upbraid  them  until  they  retired  from  his 
premises.  It  was  not  so  with  the  children 
of  the  little  herald,  the  owl.  In  fact,  he  had 
played  with  them  ever  since  he  could  re 
member,  and  the  attachment  between  them 
became  permanent.  Wherever  Pezpeza  goes, 
the  little  owl  always  comes  and  sits  near-by 
upon  some  convenient  mound.  If  any  hawk 
is  in  sight,  and  if  he  should  see  it  first,  he 
would  at  once  give  the  warning  and  Pezpeza 
would  run  for  his  house. 

Every  day  some  prairie-dog  left  the  town 
in  quest  of  a  new  home.  The  chief  reason 
for  this  is  over-population — hence,  scarcity 
of  food;  for  the  ground  does  not  yield  a 
sufficient  quantity  for  so  many. 

One  morning,  as  he  was  coming  out  of 
their  house,  Pezpeza  found  his  father  lying 
dead  within  the  entrance.  At  first  he  would 
not  go  by,  but  at  last  he  left  the  house,  as 
did  the  rest  of  the  family.  None  returned 
to  their  old  home.  The  mother  and  children 
built  a  new  house  on  the  edge  of  the  town, 
dangerously  near  a  creek,  and  the  old  home 
stead  was  after  that  owned  by  a  large  rattle- 
128 


A  Founder  of  Ten   Towns 

snake  family  who  had  always  loafed  about 
the  place.  The  new  home  was  a  good  one, 
and  the  new  ground  yielded  an  abundant 
crop,  but  they  wrere  harassed  by  the  wolves 
and  wild-cats,  because  they  were  near  the 
creek  and  within  easy  approach. 

Pezpeza  was  out  feeding  one  morning  with 
a  brother  when  all  at  once  the  owl  gave  the 
warning.  They  both  ran  for  the  house,  and 
Pezpeza  got  in  safe,  but  his  brother  was  car 
ried  off  by  a  wolf. 

When  he  came  out  again,  the  place  was 
not  like  what  it  used  to  be  to  him.  He  had 
a  desire  to  go  somewhere  else,  and  off  he 
started  without  telling  any  one.  He  follow 
ed  an  old  buffalo-trail  which  lay  over  the 
plain  and  up  the  Owl  River. 

The  river  wound  about  among  the  hills 
and  between  deeply  cut  banks,  forming  wide 
bottom-lands,  well  timbered  with  cotton- 
woods.  It  was  a  warm  day  of  blue  haze 
in  the  early  spring,  and  Pezpeza  ran  along 
in  excellent  spirits.  Suddenly  a  warning 
screech  came  from  behind,  and  he  lay  flat, 
immovable,  upon  the  path.  Ah,  it  is  his 
friend  the  young  herald,  the  owl  playmate! 
The  owl  had  seen  his  young  friend  run  away 
129 


R-ed  Hunters  <vnd   the   AnimaJ   People 

over  the  prairie,  so  he  flew  to  join  him,  giv 
ing  no  thought  to  his  people  or  his  own 
affairs. 

The  herald  flew  ahead  and  perched  upon 
a  convenient  mound  until  his  friend  came 
up;  then  he  went  ahead  again.  Thus  the 
two  travelled  over  the  plain  until  they  came 
to  a  point  where  many  buffalo  skulls  lay 
scattered  over  the  ground.  Here,  some 
years  before,  the  Red  men  had  annihilated  a 
herd  of  buffalo  in  a  great  hunt. 

As  usual,  the  herald  flew  ahead  and  took  up 
his  position  upon  a  buffalo  skull  which  lay 
nose  downward.  The  skull  was  now  bleach 
ed  white,  but  the  black  horns  were  still  at 
tached  to  it.  The  herald  sat  between  these 
horns. 

Meanwhile  Pezpeza  was  coming  along  the 
buffalo-path  at  a  fairly  good  speed.  Again 
he  heard  the  danger-call  and  ran  for  the 
nearest  skull  to  hide.  He  was  glad  to  find 
that  the  thin  bones  of  the  nose  were  gone,  so 
that  he  could  easily  enter  it.  He  was  not 
any  too  quick  in  finding  a  refuge,  for  a  large 
eagle  swooped  down  with  a  rush  and  sat  by 
the  skull.  Pezpeza.  had  crouched  in  the 
inner  cavity,  and  when  he  was  discovered 
130 


A   Founder   of  Ten   Towns 

he  made  a  great  show  of  indignation  and 
fight.  But  the  eagle,  having  made  a  careful 
study  of  the  position  of  his  intended  victim, 
finally  flew  away,  and  in  due  time  Pezpeza 
proceeded  on  his  journey. 

He  did  not  go  far,  but  when  he  had  found 
a  level,  grassy  plateau,  commanding  all  the 
approaches,  he  began  without  delay  to  dig  a 
home  for  himself,  for  he  is  not  safe  a  moment 
without  a  home.  The  herald  sat  a  little  way 
off  upon  a  stray  bowlder,  and  occasionally  he 
would  fly  out  for  a  short  distance  and  then 
return. 

The  sun  hovered  over  Fox  Ridge,  and  long 
columns  of  shadow  were  cast  by  the  hills. 
Pezpeza,  weary  with  his  journey  and  the 
work  of  digging  a  home  at  least  deep  enough 
for  a  night's  occupancy,  had  laid  himself 
away  in  it  to  sleep.  The  herald,  as  usual, 
constituted  himself  a  night-watch,  and  perch 
ed  upon  the  newly  made  mound.  There  he 
sat  with  his  head  sunk  deep  in  his  soft  feath 
ers. 

No  sooner  had  the  sun  set  in  the  west  than 
the  full  moon  appeared  in  the  east,  but  the 
owl  still  sat  motionless.  He  did  not  move 
even  when  a  gray  wolf  came  trotting  along 


Red   Hunters  aLfid  the   Animal   People 

the  buffalo-trail.  When  he  came  opposite 
the  mound  he  stopped  and  held  his  muzzle 
low.  At  last  he  cautiously  advanced,  and 
when  he  was  dangerously  near  the  owl 
flew  away  and  the  wolf  rushed  upon  the 
mound,  and  stood  for  a  while  peering  into 
the  hole. 

It  was  now  the  herald's  turn  to  annoy.  It 
is  true  he  cannot  do  anything  more  than 
bluff,  but  he  is  skilled  in  that.  Especially 
at  night,  his  gleam-' ng  eyes  and  the  snapping 
of  his  bill,  together  with  his  pretentious 
swoop,  make  even  the  gray  wolf  nervous,  and 
it  was  not  long  before  he  had  decided  to  go 
farther. 

The  next  morning  the  enterprising  town- 
builder  earnestly  went  about  completing  his 
home,  although  one  could  see  only  the  little 
mound  and  the  cup-shaped  entrance — all  else 
was  deep  underground.  Every  day  there 
were  arrivals,  singly  or  in  couples,  and  now 
and  then  a  whole  family.  Nearly  all  brought 
their  heralds  with  them,  and  these,  likewise, 
came  singly  or  in  pairs.  Immediately,  each 
couple  would  go  to  work  to  prepare  a  dwell 
ing  for  themselves,  for  they  are  not  safe  with 
out  them,  and,  besides,  they  seem  to  believe 
132 


A  Founder  of  Tei\  Towns 

in  independent  homes.  Thus  in  one  moon 
the  town  became  a  respectably  large  one. 

Shunkmanitoo,  the  wolf,  had  many  a  time 
trotted  over  the  plateau  and  seen  either  a 
lone  buffalo  bull  grazing  or  lying  down  chew 
ing  his  cud,  or  an  antelope  standing  cautious 
ly  in  the  middle  that  he  might  better  see  the 
approach  of  any  danger.  Now,  after  a  few 
days'  absence,  he  found  a  flourishing  village, 
and  one  by  no  means  devoid  of  interest  and 
attraction. 

Every  bright  day  the  little  people  played 
"catch-the-laugh."  It  is  so  called  by  the 
Red  people.  When  all  were  outside  their 
houses,  one  would  jump  into  the  air  and 
make  a  peculiar  sound,  half  squeak  and  half 
growl.  The  nearest  one  would  take  it  up, 
and  so  on  throughout  the  village.  All  would 
rise  on  their  hind-feet  and  bob  up  and  down, 
at  the  same  time  giving  the  peculiar  cry. 
This  performance  they  repeat  whenever  they 
are  happy. 

Pezpeza's  town  was  now  quite  populous. 
But  he  was  not  the  mayor;  he  did  not  get 
any  credit  for  the  founding  of  the  town;  at 
least  as  far  as  the  Red  people  could  observe. 
Their  life  and  government  seemed  to  be 
133 


R.ed   Hunters   svnd   the   AnimoJ  People 

highly  democratic.  Usually  the  concentra 
tion  of  population  produced  a  certain  weed 
which  provided  abundance  of  food  for  them. 
But  under  some  conditions  it  will  not  grow; 
and  in  that  case,  as  soon  as  the  native  buffalo- 
grass  is  eaten  up  the  town  is  threatened  with 
a  famine,  and  the  inhabitants  are  compelled 
to  seek  food  at  a  distance  from  their  houses. 
This  is  quite  opposed  to  the  habit  and  safety 
of  the  helpless  little  people.  Finally  the  only 
alternative  will  be  the  desertion  of  the 
town. 

Thus  it  happened  that  Pezpeza,  when  the 
buffalo-grass  was  all  gone  about  his  place, 
began  to  realize  the  necessity  of  finding  a 
new  home.  The  ground  was  not  adapted 
to  the  crop  that  generally  grew  in  a  prairie- 
dog  town.  One  morning  he  was  compelled 
to  go  beyond  the  limits  of  the  village  to  get 
his  breakfast,  and  all  at  once  the  thought  of 
going  off  in  search  of  a  good  town-site  seized 
him  strongly.  He  consulted  no  one,  not 
even  his  best  friend,  the  owl.  He  simply  ran 
away  up  the  river. 

The  buffalo-trails  were  many  and  well 
beaten.  He  followed  one  of  them — he  knew 
not  whither.  The  herald  soon  discovered 
134 


A  Founder  of  Ten   Towns 

his  departure  and  again  followed  his  friend. 
Pezpeza  was  glad  to  see  him  fly  past  and  take 
the  lead,  as  usual. 

The  trail  now  led  them  to  the  brow  of  the 
table -land.  Below  them,  along  the  river- 
bottoms,  great  herds  of  buffalo  grazed  among 
the  shady  cottonwood  groves,  and  the  path 
led  down  the  slope.  It  was  safer  for  the 
little  town-maker  to  get  among  the  big, 
burly  bison,  for  the  wolf  does  not  go  among 
them  at  such  times.  It  is  usually  just  be 
yond  the  herd  that  he  peeps  from  behind  the 
hills,  watching  for  a  chance  to  attack  an  iso 
lated  cow. 

The  buffalo  did  not  pay  any  attention  to 
the  little  fellow  running  on  the  trail  and  al 
most  under  their  feet.  They  even  allowed 
the  herald  to  perch  upon  an  old  bull's  back 
in  order  to  keep  within  sight  of  his  friend. 
Through  the  great  herd  the  two  proceeded. 
It  was  hot,  and  the  grass  was  all  eaten  off 
close  to  the  ground.  There  was  no  food  for 
the  little  traveller. 

He  had  descried  a  fair  plateau  on  the  oppo 
site  side  of  the  Owl  River  as  he  came  down 
.  the  hill,  and  his  mind  was  fixed  upon  this 
land.  He  was  heading  for  the  river,  but 


R.ed   Hunters   evnd   the    Animal   People 

found  himself  much  hampered  by  the  in 
creasing  number  of  the  buffalo. 

At  the  edge  of  the  bank  which  marked  the 
old  bed  of  the  stream  Pezpeza  came  to  a 
stand-still.  Here  the  trail  entered  the  woods 
and  the  bison  followed  it  in  single  file.  As 
they  skirted  the  bank  they  passed  so  near 
him  that  their  broad  backs  were  almost 
within  his  reach,  and  some  of  them  stopped 
for  a  moment  to  rub  themselves  against  its 
steep  sides.  Finally  there  came  an  old  bull 
with  horns  worn  almost  to  the  skull.  He 
stopped  just  below  Pezpeza  and  dug  his 
stumpy  horn  into  the  earth  wall,  and  Pez 
peza  sprang  gently  upon  his  back  and  flat 
tened  himself  out  as  thin  as  he  could. 

The  bull  did  not  suspect  that  anything  un 
usual  had  happened.  He  supposed  that 
what  he  felt  was  merely  a  lump  of  dirt  that  he 
had  loosened  with  his  horns,  and  off  he  walk 
ed  quite  unconcernedly  on  the  trail  towards 
the  river.  Many  of  his  people  were  already 
crossing,  and  he  followed  them.  The  herald 
was  perched  upon  the  back  of  another  bull, 
and  so  the  pair  crossed  the  Owl  River. 

There  was  a  broad  meadow-land  through 
which  the  trail  led  up  on  the  other  side  until 


A   Founder  of  Ten   Towns 

it  lost  itself  in  a  sage-bush  plain.  Here  the 
bison  scattered  to  graze,  and  many  followed 
the  ravines  for  better  grass.  Pezpeza  let 
himself  slide  from  the  bull's  back,  who  gave 
a  jump  and  a  snort,  but  it  was  too  late  to 
enter  a  protest. 

The  little  town-builder  now  began  his  work 
as  faithfully  as  before,  and  soon  founded  an 
other  large  town.  But  again  the  misfortunes 
of  life  compelled  him  and  his  friend  to  leave 
the  place.  Thus  they  travelled  up  the  river, 
now  upon  one  side  and  now  the  other,  and 
never  more  than  a  day's  journey.  More  than 
once  Pezpeza  found  a  mate,  and  he  raised 
many  a  family;  but,  like  a  true  pioneer,  he 
could  never  remain  long  in  an  old  and  over 
crowded  town. 

His  tenth  and  last  home  was  the  beautiful 
table-land  at  the  junction  of  Owl  River  with 
Lost  Creek.  As  has  been  described  in  the 
beginning,  it  was  a  semicircular  plain  of 
large  extent  and  commanded  a  striking  view. 
At  the  very  head  of  the  embankment,  which 
sloped  abruptly  down  to  the  river  level,  there 
stood  a  number  of  large  grassy  mounds,  and 
among  them  were  several  peculiar  structures 
composed  of  poles  placed  upright  in  the 
137 


R.ed   Hunters  and  the   Anima.1    People 

ground  with  others  arranged  horizontally 
so  as  to  form  a  sort  of  shelter. 

The  town-maker  gave  no  serious  thought 
to  these  things.  The  grass  upon  the  plateau 
was  excellent,  and  he  set  to  work  at  once, 
selecting  a  site  for  his  home  near  the  centre 
of  the  plain,  for  greater  safety.  Every  day 
new-comers  came,  and  it  was  a  source  of  sat 
isfaction  to  him  that  his  selection  was  such 
as  every  prairie-dog  could  not  but  approve. 
In  a  few  days  the  town  was  fairly  started. 

There  arrived  one  day  a  family  who  took 
up  their  claim  close  by  Pezpeza's  place.  In 
this  family  there  was  a  pretty  maid,  according 
to  Pezpeza's  notion  and  fancy.  There  was 
no  reason  why  he  should  not  think  so,  for  he 
was  now  a  widower,  a  wolf  having  carried 
off  his  faithful  mate  of  several  years'  stand 
ing.  It  was  soon  noticed  by  the  other  little 
people  that  the  pretty  maid  with  garments 
the  color  of  the  buffalo-grass  in  autumn  had 
gone  to  live  with  Pezpeza. 

Pezpeza's  town  was  now  a  place  of  respect 
able  size,  well  known  in  all  that  region.  The 
coyote  and  gray  wolf  knew  it  well;  the 
Red  man  also,  for,  as  I  said  in  the  beginning, 
their  favorite  summer  camp  was  not  far 

138 


A  Founder  of  Ten  Towns 

away,  and  there  they  were  wont  to  dance 
the  "sun  dance"  at  every  midsummer. 

At  times  the  Red  men  were  seen  to  come 
and  roam,  singing,  around  the  large  mounds 
and  the  curious  scaffolds,  and  before  they 
went  away  they  would  place  one  of  their 
number  upon  a  new  scaffold  or  heap  anoth 
er  mound.  Still  the  little  people  gave  no 
thought  to  these  strange  actions. 

Many,  many  of  their  tribe  came  from  all 
directions,  until  Pezpeza's  town  might  al 
most  be  called  a  city.  Many  children  were 
born  there.  The  plateau  was  alive  with  the 
little  mound-builders,  who  constantly  built 
their  homes  farther  and  farther  out,  till  at 
last  some  had  built  right  under  the  Red  men's 
scaffolds  and  hard  by  the  large  mounds, 
which  were  the  graves  of  their  dead. 

Pezpeza's  ground  did  not  yield  its  usual 
crop  any  more.  His  children  were  all  grown 
and  had  homes  of  their  own.  For  some  rea 
son  he  did  not  care  to  go  far  away,  so  the  old 
folks  simply  moved  out  to  the  edge  of  the 
town 

Pezpeza  was  now  old  and  very  large  and 
fat.  Never  had  he  known  for  so  long  a  time 
a  happy  home  as  in  the  town  upon  the  "  scaf- 


Red   Hunters  a.nd  the  Anima.1  People 

fold  plain,"  as  the  place  was  called  by  the 
Red  people.  When  they  came  to  visit  the 
graves  of  their  dead  they  had  never  troubled 
the  little  mound-builders,  therefore  the  old 
founder  of  many  towns  did  not  think  of 
danger  when  he  built  very  near  to  one  of  the 
scaffolds,  and  there  were  others  who  did  the 
same. 

On  a  bright  autumn  morning,  early  risers 
among  the  little  people  saw  one  of  the  Red 
men  standing  under  a  newly  built  scaffold 
and  wailing  loudly.  He  was  naked  and 
painted  black.  Many  of  the  young  people 
of  the  town  barked  at  him  as  he  stood  there 
in  their  midst,  and  some  of  the  young  her 
alds,  disturbed  by  the  noise  of  his  wailing, 
flew  about  and  alighted  upon  the  scaffolds. 
When  he  ceased  mourning,  he  turned  about 
and  talked  long  at  the  little  people  and  then 
went  away. 

The  angry  mourner  reported  at  the  great 
camp  that  the  prairie-dogs  and  their  owls 
were  desecrating  the  graves,  and  it  was  time 
that  they  should  be  driven  away.  A  council 
was  held,  and  the  next  day  the  Red  men 
came  with  their  dogs  and  killed  many.  Their 
arrows  pinned  many  of  them  to  the  ground 
140 


A  Founder   of  Ten   Towns 

before  they  could  dodge  into  their  holes. 
Then  they  scattered  all  over  the  town  and 
remained  there,  so  that  none  dared  to  come 
out.  The  owls  were  shot  or  driven  away, 
and  the  Red  men  killed  every  rattlesnake 
that  they  found.  It  was  an  awful  time! 
During  the  night  many  of  the  little  people 
went  away,  deserting  their  homes. 

The  next  day  the  same  thing  happened 
again,  and  the  Red  men  even  stopped  up  the 
entrances  to  many  of  the  houses  with  round 
stones.  Again  in  the  night  many  of  the 
little  mound-builders  left  the  town. 

On  the  third  day  they  came  and  set  fire 
to  the  plain.  After  that,  in  the  night,  all  the 
remaining  population  abandoned  the  town, 
except  only  Pezpeza.  All  this  time  the 
founder  of  the  ten  towns  had  remained  in 
doors.  He  was  old  and  reluctant  to  move. 
At  last  he  emerged  with  his  mate.  An  awful 
sight  met  their  eyes.  On  the  blackened 
plain  not  one  of  the  great  population  could 
be  seen.  Not  one  of  their  many  children 
and  grandchildren  was  there  to  greet  them 
or  to  play  at  "  catch-the-laugh  "  ! 

As  soon  as  they  dared  the  two  old  people 
sought  food  under  the  scaffolds,  where  the 
141 


R.ed    Hunters    and   the   Animal   People 

grass  was  not  burned.  Two  Red  men  arose 
from  behind  a  grave  and  let  their  arrows  fly. 
Alas!  the  aged  leader  of  the  mound-builders 
was  pinned  to  the  ground.  His  mate  barely 
escaped  a  similar  fate,  for  the  other  missed. 
The  herald  saw  everything  that  had  hap 
pened.  He  cook  up  his  watch  from  the  cen 
tre  of  the  ruined  town.  The  sun  went  down, 
moonlight  flooded  the  prairie,  and  he  heard 
the  evening  call  of  the  coyotes  upon  Fox 
Ridge.  At  last  he  saw  something  moving — 
it  was  the  widowed  mate  of  his  friend,  run 
ning  along  the  trail  from  the  desolate  town. 
He  gave  one  last  look  about  him,  then  he 
silently  rose  and  followed  her. 


The   Gray   Chieftain 


ON  the  westernmost  verge  of  Cedar 
Butte  stood  Haykinshkah  and  his 
mate.  They  looked  steadily  toward  the 
setting  sun,  over  a  landscape  which  up  to 
that  time  had  scarcely  been  viewed  by  man 
—the  inner  circle  of  the  Bad  Lands. 

Cedar  Butte  guards  the  southernmost  en 
trance  to  that  wonderland,  standing  fully 
a  thousand  feet  above  the  surrounding 
country,  and  nearly  half  a  mile  long  by  a 
quarter  of  a  mile  wide.  The  summit  is  a 
level,  grassy  plain,  its  edges  heavily  fringed 
with  venerable  cedars.  To  attempt  the 
ascent  of  this  butte  is  like  trying  to  scale  the 
walls  of  Babylon,  for  its  sides  are  high  and 
all  but  inaccessible.  Near  the  top  there  are 
hanging  lands  or  terraces  and  innumerable 
precipitous  points,  with  here  and  there  deep 
chimneys  or  abysses  in  the  solid  rock.  There 
143 


Red  Hunters    and   the  Animal   People 

are  many  hidden  recesses  and  more  than  one 
secret  entrance  to  this  ancient  castle  of  the 
gray  chieftain  and  his  ancestors,  but  to  assail 
it  successfully  requires  more  than  common 
skill  and  spirit. 

Many  a  coyote  had  gone  up  as  high  as  the 
second  leaping-bridge  and  there  abandoned 
the  attempt.  Old  grizzly  had  once  or  twice 
begun  the  ascent  with  doubt  and  misgiving, 
but  soon  discovered  his  mistake,  and  made 
clumsy  haste  to  descend  before  he  should 
tumble  into  an  abyss  from  which  no  one  ever 
returns.  Only  Igmutanka,  the  mountain- 
lion,  had  achieved  the  summit,  and  at  every 
ascent  he  had  been  well  repaid ;  yet  even  he 
seldom  chose  to  risk  such  a  climb,  when  there 
were  many  fine  hunting-grounds  in  safer 
neighborhoods. 

So  it  was  that  Cedar  Butte  had  been  the 
peaceful  home  of  the  big  spoonhorns  for  un 
told  ages.  To  be  sure,  some  of  the  younger 
and  more  adventurous  members  of  the  clan 
would  depart  from  time  to  time  to  found  a 
new  family,  but  the  wiser  and  more  con 
servative  were  content  to  remain  in  their 
stronghold.  There  stood  the  two  patri 
archs,  looking  down  complacently  upon  the 
144 


The   Gra^y   ChieftaJn 

herds  of  buffalo,  antelope,  and  elk  that  peo 
pled  the  lower  plains.  While  the  sun  hov 
ered  over  the  western  hills,  a  coyote  upon  a 
near-by  eminence  gave  his  accustomed  call 
to  his  mate.  This  served  as  a  signal  to  all 
the  wild  hunters  of  the  plains  to  set  up  their 
inharmonious  evening  serenade,  to  which 
the  herbivorous  kindred  paid  but  little  at 
tention.  The  phlegmatic  spoonhorn  pair  lis 
tened  to  it  all  with  a  fine  air  of  indifference, 
like  that  of  one  who  sits  upon  his  own  bal 
cony,  superior  to  the  passing  noises  of  the 
street. 

It  was  a  charming  moonlight  night  upon 
the  cedar-fringed  plain,  and  there  the  old 
chief  presently  joined  the  others  in  feast  and 
play.  His  mate  sought  out  a  secret  resting- 
place.  She  followed  the  next  gulch,  which 
was  a  perfect  labyrinth  of  caves  and  pockets, 
and  after  leaping  two  chasms  she  reached 
her  favorite  spot.  Here  the  gulch  made  a 
square  turn,  affording  a  fine  view  of  the  coun 
try  through  a  window-like  opening.  Above 
and  below  this  were  perpendicular  walls, 
and  at  the  bottom  a  small  cavity,  left  by  the 
root  of  a  pine  which  had  long  since  fallen 
and  crumbled  into  dust.  To  this  led  a  nar- 


Red   Hunters   a,nd   the   AnimoJ   People 

row  terrace — so  narrow  that  man  or  beast 
would  stop  and  hesitate  long  before  ventur 
ing  upon  it.  The  place  was  her  own  by  right 
of  daring  and  discovery,  and  the  mother's 
instinct  had  brought  her  here  to-night,  for 
the  pangs  of  deadly  sickness  were  upon  her. 

In  a  little  while  relief  came,  and  the  ewe 
stood  over  a  new-born  lamb,  licking  tenderly 
the  damp,  silky  hair,  and  trimming  the  little 
hoofs  of  their  cartilaginous  points.  The 
world  was  quiet  now,  and  those  whose  busi 
ness  it  is  to  hunt  or  feed  at  night  must  do 
so  in  silence,  for  such  is  the  law  of  the  plains. 
The  wearied  mother  slept  in  peace. 

The  sun  was  well  above  the  butte  when  she 
awoke,  although  it  was  cool  and  shadowy 
still  in  her  concealed  abode.  She  gave  suck 
to  the  lamb  and  caressed  it  for  some  time 
before  she  reluctantly  prepared  its  cradle, 
according  to  the  custom  of  her  people.  She 
made  a  little  pocket  in  the  side  of  the  cave 
and  gently  put  her  baby  in.  Then  she  cov 
ered  him  all  up,  save  the  nose  and  eyes,  with 
dry  soil.  She  put  her  nose  to  his  little  sen 
sitive  ear  and  breathed  into  it  warm  love  and 
caution,  and  he  felt  and  understood  that  he 
must  keep  his  eyes  closed  and  breathe  gently, 
146 


The   Gracy    ChieftaJn 


lest  bear  or  wolf  or  man  should  spy  him  out 
when  they  had  found  her  trail.  Again  she 
put  her  warm,  loving  nose  to  his  eyes,  then 
patted  a  little  more  earth  on  his  body  and 
smoothed  it  off.  The  tachinchana  closed  his 
eyes  in  obedience,  and  she  left  him  for  the 
plain  above  in  search  of  food  and  sunlight. 

At  a  little  before  dawn,  two  wild  hunters 
left  their  camp  and  set  out  for  Cedar  Butte 
Their  movements  were  marked  by  unusual 
care  and  secrecy.  Presently  they  hid  their 
ponies  in  a  deep  ravine  and  groped  their 
way  up  through  the  difficult  Bad  Lands, 
now  and  then  pausing  to  listen.  The  two 
were  close  friends  and  rival  hunters  of  their 
tribe. 

"  I  think,  friend,  you  have  mistaken  the 
haunts  of  the  spoonhorn,"  remarked  Wacoo- 
tay,  as  the  pair  came  out  upon  one  of  the 
lower  terraces.  He  said  this  rather  to  test 
his  friend,  for  it  was  their  habit  thus  to  criti 
cise  and  question  each  other's  judgment,  in 
order  to  extract  from  each  other  fresh  ob 
servations.  What  the  one  did  not  know 
about  the  habits  of  the  animals  they  hunted 
in  common  the  other  could  usually  supply. 
U7 


Red  Hunters   and   the    Animal  People 

"This  is  his  home — I  know  it,"  replied 
Grayfoot.  "And  in  this  thing  the  animals 
are  much  like  ourselves.  They  will  not  leave 
an  old  haunt  unless  forced  to  do  so  either  by 
lack  of  food  or  overwhelming  danger." 

They  had  already  passed  on  to  the  next  ter 
race  and  leaped  a  deep  chasm  to  gain  the  op 
posite  side  of  the  butte,  when  Grayfoot  sud 
denly whispered,  "In  ahjin!"  (Stop!).  Both 
men  listened  attentively.  "  Tap,  tap,  tap," 
an  almost  metallic  sound  came  to  them 
from  around  the  perpendicular  wall  of  rock. 

"  He  is  chipping  his  horns!"  exclaimed  the 
hunter,  overjoyed  to  surprise  the  chieftain 
at  this  his  secret  occupation.  "  Poor  beast, 
they  are  now  too  long  for  him,  so  that  he 
cannot  reach  the  short  grass  to  feed.  Some 
of  them  die  starving,  when  they  have  not 
the  strength  to  do  the  hard  bucking  against 
the  rock  to  shorten  their  horns.  He  chooses 
this  time,  when  he  thinks  no  one  will  hear 
him,  and  he  even  leaves  his  own  clan  when  it 
is  necessary  for  him  to  do  this.  Come,  let  us 
crawl  up  on  him  unawares." 

They  proceeded  cautiously  and  with  cat 
like  steps  around  the  next  projection,  and 
stood  upon  a  narrow  strip  of  slanting  terrace. 
148 


The  Gra.y   Chieftain 

At  short  intervals  the  pounding  noise  con 
tinued,  but  strain  their  eyes  as  they  might 
they  could  see  nothing.  Yet  they  knew 
that  a  few  paces  from  them,  in  the  darkness, 
the  old  ram  was  painfully  driving  his  horns 
against  the  solid  rock.  Finally  they  lay 
flat  upon  the  ground  under  a  dead  cedar,  the 
color  of  whose  trunk  and  that  of  the  scanty 
soil  somewhat  resembled  their  clothing,  and 
on  their  heads  they  had  stuck  some  bunches 
of  sage-bush,  to  conceal  them  from  the  eyes 
of  the  spoonhorn. 

With  the  first  gray  of  the  approaching 
dawn  the  two  hunters  looked  eagerly  about 
them.  There  stood,  in  all  his  majesty,  height 
ened  by  the  wild  grandeur  of  his  surroundings, 
the  gray  chieftain  of  the  Cedar  Butte!  He 
had  no  thought  of  being  observed  at  that 
hour.  Entirely  unsuspicious  of  danger,  he 
stood  alone  upon  a  pedestal-like  terrace, 
from  which  vantage-point  it  was  his  wont  to 
survey  the  surrounding  country  every  morn 
ing.  If  the  secret  must  be  told,  he  had  done 
so  for  years,  ever  since  he  became  the  head 
chief  of  the  Cedar  Butte  clan. 

It  is  the  custom  of  their  tribe  that  when  a 
ram  attains  the  age  of  five  years  he  is  en- 
149 


Red   Hunters   a.i\d  the   AnimaJ   People 

titled  to  a  clan  of  his  own,  and  thereafter 
must  defend  his  right  and  supremacy  against 
all  comers.  His  experience  and  knowledge 
are  the  guide  of  his  clan.  In  view  of  all  this, 
the  gray  chieftain  had  been  very  thorough 
in  his  observations.  There  was  not  an  ob 
ject  anywhere  near  the  shape  of  bear,  wolf, 
or  man  for  miles  around  his  kingdom  that 
was  not  noted,  as  well  as  the  relative  posi 
tions  of  rocks  and  conspicuous  trees. 

The  best  time  for  Haykinshkah  to  make 
his  daily  observations  is  at  sunrise  and  sun 
set,  when  the  air  is  usually  clear  and  objects 
appear  distinct.  Between  these  times  the 
clan  feed  and  settle  down  to  chew  their  cud 
and  sleep,  yet  some  are  always  on  the  alert 
to  catch  a  passing  stranger  within  their  field 
of  observation.  But  the  old  chief  spoon- 
horn  pays  very  little  attention.  His  duty  is 
done.  He  may  be  nestled  in  a  gulch  just 
big  enough  to  hold  him,  either  sound  asleep 
or  leisurely  chewing  his  cud.  The  younger 
members  of  the  clan  take  their  position  upon 
the  upper  terraces  and  under  the  shade  of 
projecting  rocks,  after  a  whole  night's  feast 
ing  and  play  upon  the  plain. 

As  spoonhorn  stood  motionless,  looking 
150 


The   Gray   Chieftain 

away  off  toward  the  distant  hills,  the  plain 
below  appeared  from  this  elevated  point  very 
smooth  and  sheetlike,  and  every  moving 
object  a  mere  speck.  His  form  and  color 
were  not  very  different  from  the  dirty  gray 
rocks  and  clay  of  the  butte. 

Wacootay  broke  the  silence.  "  I  know  of 
no  animal  that  stands  so  long  without  move 
ment,  unless  it  is  the  turtle.  I  think  he  is 
the  largest  ram  I  have  ever  seen." 

"  I  am  sure  he  did  not  chip  where  he  stands 
now,"  remarked  Grayfoot.  "This  chipping- 
place  is  a  monastery  to  the  priests  of  the 
spoonhorn  tribe.  It  is  their  medicine-lodge. 
I  have  more  than  once  approached  the  spot, 
but  could  never  find  the  secret  entrance." 

" Shall  I  shoot  him  now?"  whispered  his 
partner  in  the  chase. 

"  No,  do  not  do  it.  He  is  a  real  chief. 
He  looks  mysterious  and  noble.  Let  us 
know  him  better.  Besides,  if  we  kill  him 
now  we  shall  never  see  him  again.  Look! 
he  will  fall  to  that  deep  gulch  ten  trees' 
length  below,  where  no  one  can  get  at  him." 

As  Grayfoot  spoke  the  animal  shifted  his 
position,  facing  them  squarely.  The  two 
men  closed  their  eyes  and  wrinkled  their 


R.ed   Hunters    and   the   Animal   People 

motionless  faces  into  the  semblance  of  two 
lifeless  mummies.  The  old  sage  of  the 
mountains  was  apparently  deceived,  but 
after  a  few  moments  he  got  down  from  his 
lofty  position  and  disappeared  around  a 
point  of  rock. 

"  I  never  care  to  shoot  an  animal  while  he 
is  giving  me  a  chance  to  know  his  ways," 
explained  Grayfoot.  "We  have  plenty  of 
buffalo  meat.  We  are  not  hungry.  All  we 
want  is  spoons.  We  can  get  one  or  two 
sheep  by-and-by,  if  we  have  more  wit  than 
they." 

To  this  speech  Wacootay  agreed,  for  his 
curiosity  was  now  fully  aroused  by  Gray- 
foot's  view,  although  he  had  never  thought 
of  it  in  just  that  way  before.  It  had  always 
been  the  desire  for  meat  which  had  chiefly 
moved  him  in  the  matter  of  the  hunt. 

Having  readjusted  their  sage  wigs,  the 
hunters  made  the  circuit  of  the  abyss  that 
divided  them  from  the  ram,  and  as  they 
looked  for  his  trail  they  noticed  the  tracks 
of  a  large  ewe  leading  down  toward  the  in 
accessible  gulches. 

"Ah,  she  has  some  secret  down  there! 
She  never  leaves  her  clan  like  this  unless  it 
152 


The  Grsvy  Chieftain 

is  to  steal  away  on  a  personal  affair  of  her 


own." 


So  saying,  Grayfoot  with  his  fellow  tracked 
the  ewe's  footprint  along  the  verge  of  a  deep 
gulf  with  much  trouble  and  patience.  The 
hunter's  curiosity  and  a  strong  desire  to 
know  her  secret  impelled  the  former  to  lead 
the  way. 

"What  will  be  our  profit,  if  one  slips  and 
goes  down  into  the  gulch,  never  to  be  seen 
again?"  remarked  Wacootay,  as  they  ap 
proached  a  leaping-place.  The  chasm  be 
low  was  of  a  great  depth  and  dark.  "  It  is 
not  wise  for  us  to  follow  farther ;  this  ewe  has 
no  horns  that  can  be  made  into  spoons." 

"Come,  friend;  it  is  when  one  is  doubting 
that  mishaps  are  apt  to  occur,"  urged  his 
companion. 

"Koda,  heyu  yo!"  exclaimed  Wacootay, 
the  next  moment,  in  distress. 

"Hehehe,  koda!  Hold  fast!"  cried  the 
other. 

Wacootay 's  moccasined  foot  had  slipped 
on  the  narrow  trail,  and  in  the  twinkling  of 
an  eye  he  had  almost  gone  down  a  precipice  of 
a  hundred  feet ;  but  with  a  desperate  launch 
forward  he  caught  the  bough  of  an  over- 
153 


R*ed   Hunters   and   the    ArvimaJ   People 

hanging  cedar  and  swung  by  his  hands  over 
the  abyss. 

Quickly  Grayfoot  pulled  both  their  bows 
from  the  quivers.  He  first  tied  himself  to 
the  trunk  of  the  cedar  with  his  packing- 
strap,  which  always  hung  from  his  belt. 
Then  he  held  both  the  bows  toward  his 
friend,  who,  not  without  difficulty,  changed 
his  hold  from  the  cedar  bough  to  the  bows. 
After  a  short  but  determined  effort,  the  two 
men  stood  side  by  side  once  more  upon  the 
narrow  foothold  of  the  terrace.  Without  a 
word  they  followed  the  ewe's  track  to  the 
cave. 

Here  she  had  lain  last  night.  Both  men 
began  to  search  for  other  marks,  but  they 
found  not  so  much  as  a  sign  of  scratching 
anywhere.  They  examined  the  ground  close 
ly  without  any  success.  All  at  once  a  faint 
"  Ba-a-a!"  came  from  almost  under  their  feet. 
They  saw  a  puff  of  smokelike  dust  as  the 
little  creature  called  for  its  mother.  It  had 
felt  the  footsteps  of  the  hunters  and  mistaken 
them  for  those  of  its  own  folk. 

Wacootay  hastily  dug  into  the  place  with 
his  hands  and  found  the  soil  loose.  Soon 
he  uncovered  a  little  lamb.  "Ba-a-a!"  it 


The  Gra.y  ChieftaJn 

cried  again,  and  quick  as  a  flash  the  ewe  ap 
peared,  stamping  the  ground  in  wrath. 

Wacootay  seized  an  arrow  and  fitted  it  to 
the  string,  but  his  companion  checked  him. 

"  No,  no,  my  friend!  It  is  not  the  skin  or 
meat  that  we  are  looking  for.  We  want  horn 
for  ladles  and  spoons.  The  mother  is  right. 
We  must  let  her  babe  alone." 

The  wild  hunters  silently  retreated,  and 
the  ewe  ran  swiftly  to  the  spot  and  took  her 
lamb  away. 

"So  it  is,"  said  Grayfoot,  after  a  long  si 
lence,  "all  the  tribes  of  earth  have  some 
common  feeling.  I  believe  they  are  people 
as  much  as  we  are.  The  Great  Mystery  has 
made  them  what  they  are.  Although  they 
do  not  speak  our  tongue,  we  often  seem  to 
understand  their  thought.  It  is  not  right 
to  take  the  life  of  any  of  them  unless  necessity 
compels  us  to  do  so. 

"You  know,"  he  continued,  " the  ewe  con 
ceals  her  lamb  in  this  way  until  she  has 
trained  it  to  escape  from  its  enemies  by  leap 
ing  up  or  down  from  terrace  to  terrace.  I 
have  seen  her  teaching  the  yearlings  and 
two-year-olds  to  dive  down  the  face  of  a 
cliff  which  was  fully  twice  the  height  of  a 
155 


Red   Hunters  and    the   AnimaJ    People 

man.  They  strike  on  the  head  and  the  two 
fore-feet.  The  ram  falls  largely  upon  his 
horns,  which  are  curved  in  such  a  way  as  to 
protect  them  from  injury.  The  body  re 
bounds  slightly,  and  they  get  upon  their  feet 
as  easily  as  if  they  had  struck  a  pillow.  At 
first  the  yearlings  hesitate  and  almost  lose 
their  balance,  but  the  mother  makes  them 
repeat  the  performance  until  they  have  ac 
complished  it  to  her  satisfaction. 

1 '  They  are  trained  to  leap  chasms  on  all- 
fours,  and  finally  the  upward  jump,  which  is 
a  more  difficult  feat.  If  the  height  is  not 
great  they  can  clear  it  neatly,  but  if  it  is  too 
high  for  that  they  will  catch  the  rocky  ledge 
with  their  fore-feet  and  pull  themselves  up 
like  a  man. 

"  In  assisting  their  young  to  gain  upper 
terraces  they  show  much  ingenuity.  I  once 
saw  them  make  a  ladder  of  their  bodies. 
The  biggest  ram  stood  braced  against  the 
steep  wall  as  high  as  his  body  could  reach, 
head  placed  between  his  fore-feet,  while  the 
next  biggest  one  rode  his  hind  parts,  and 
so  on  until  the  little  ones  could  walk  upon 
their  broad  backs  to  the  top.  We  know  that 
all  animals  make  their  young  practise  such 

156 


The   GraLy   Chieftain 

feats  as  are  necessary  to  their  safety  and 
advantage,  and  thus  it  is  that  these  people 
are  so  well  fitted  to  their  peculiar  mode  of 
life. 

' '  How  often  we  are  outwitted  by  the  ani 
mals  we  hunt!  The  Great  Mystery  gives 
them  this  chance  to  save  their  lives  by  elud 
ing  the  hunter,  when  they  have  no  weapons 
of  defence.  The  ewe  has  seen  us,  and  she 
has  doubtless  warned  all  the  clan  of  dan- 
ger." 

But  there  was  one  that  she  did  not  see. 
When  the  old  chief  left  his  clan  to  go  to  the 
secret  place  for  chipping  his  horns,  the  place 
where  many  a  past  monarch  of  the  Bad 
Lands  has  performed  that  painful  operation, 
he  did  not  intend  to  rejoin  them  immediately. 
It  was  customary  with  him  at  this  time  to 
seek  solitude  and  sleep. 

The  two  hunters  found  and  carefully  ex 
amined  the  tracks  of  the  fleeing  clan.  The 
old  ram  was  not  among  them.  As  they  fol 
lowed  the  trail  along  the  terrace,  they  came 
to  a  leaping-place  which  did  not  appear  to 
be  generally  used.  Gray  foot  stopped  and 
kneeled  down  to  examine  the  ground  below. 

"Ho!"  he  exclaimed;  "the  old  chief  has 


Red   Hunters   svnd   the    Anima.1   People 

gone  down  this  trail  but  has  not  returned. 
He  is  lying  down  near  his  chipping-place,  if 
there  is  no  other  outlet." 

Both  men  leaped  to  the  next  terrace  be 
low,  and  followed  the  secret  pass  into  a  rocky 
amphitheatre,  opening  out  from  the  terrace 
upon  which  they  had  first  seen  the  old  ram. 
Here  he  lay  asleep. 

Wacootay  pulled  an  arrow  from  his  quiver. 

"Yes,"  said  his  friend.  "Shoot  now!  A 
warrior  is  always  a  warrior — and  we  are  look 
ing  for  horn  for  spoons." 

The  old  chief  awoke  to  behold  the  most 
dreaded  hunter — man — upon  the  very  thresh 
old  of  his  sanctuary.  Wildly  he  sprang  up 
ward  to  gain  the  top  of  the  cliff;  but  Wa 
cootay  was  expert  and  quick  in  the  use  of 
his  weapon.  He  had  sent  into  his  side  a 
shaft  that  was  deadly.  The  monarch's  fore- 
hoofs  caught  the  edge — he  struggled  bravely 
for  a  moment,  then  fell  limp  to  the  rocky 
floor. 

"He  is  dead.  My  friend,  the  noblest  of 
chiefs  is  dead!"  exclaimed  Grayfoot,  as  he 
stood  over  him,  in  great  admiration  and  re 
spect  for  the  gray  chieftain. 


Hootay  of  the   Little   Rosebud 


ON  the  south  side  of  Scout  Butte  there 
is  a  crescent-shaped  opening,  walled  in 
by  the  curving  sides  of  the  hill.  This  little 
plain  cannot  be  seen  from  the  top  of  the 
butte.  There  is  a  terrace  upon  its  brow  on 
which  a  few  scrub  pines  grow,  so  regularly 
that  one  would  think  them  set  there  by  hu 
man  hands.  Half-way  up  the  incline  there 
stood  at  one  time  a  lone  cedar-tree,  and  at 
its  foot  there  might  have  been  discerned  a 
flat,  soft  mound.  It  consisted  of  earth 
thrown  up  from  the  diggings  of  a  cavern. 
The  wild  people  approaching  from  the  south 
could  see  this  mound,  but  would  scarcely 
note  the  entrance  to  the  immense  den  hidden 
behind  it.  One  coming  down  from  the  butte 
would  not  notice  it,  as  there  were  no  signs 
other  than  the  earth  pile.  The  Little  Rose 
bud  River  takes  its  rise  at  the  threshold  of 
this  natural  barricade. 
159 


Red  Hunters    a.nd  the   Animal   People 

This  was  the  home  of  Hootay,  the  aged 
medicine-man  of  the  Little  Rosebud  country. 
He  was  a  fighter  of  many  battles,  this  great 
and  wise  grizzly,  who  was  familiarly  called 
Hootay,  or  Stubby  Claws,  by  the  Sioux 
hunters.  They  had  all  known  of  him  for 
many  years.  It  was  believed  of  him  that  he 
had  scalped  not  less  than  eight  braves,  and 
killed  even  more  ponies  and  dogs.  No  less 
than  three  and  ten  times  the  Sioux  had  made 
expeditions  against  him,  but  each  time  they 
had  failed.  For  this  reason  they  declared 
that  he  had  good  war-medicine.  Among  the 
warriors  it  had  long  been  understood  that 
he  who  takes  Hootay 's  scalp  may  wear  a 
war-bonnet.  This  acknowledgment  of  his 
prowess,  of  course,  was  not  made  known  to 
the  aged  yet  still  formidable  bear. 

Up  and  down  the  Little  Rosebud  he  had 
left  his  well-known  imprint,  for  he  had  lost 
two  toes  on  one  foot.  Aside  from  the  loss 
of  his  big  claws,  he  had  received  several 
arrow  and  knife  wounds  during  his  warlike 
career. 

Early  in  the  fall,  Hootay  had  felt  a  severe 
aching  of  his  old  hurts.  He  had  eaten  of 
every  root-medicine  that  he  knew,  but  there 
160 


Hootay  of  the   Little   PLosebud 

was  no  relief.     Instinct  led  him  to  early  re 
tirement  and  hibernation. 

His  new  home  was  a  commodious  one,  well 
filled  with  dry  grass  and  pine-needles.  It  is 
the  custom  of  his  people  to  remain  quiet 
until  the  spring,  unless  serious  danger 
threatens.  A  series  of  heavy  storms  in 
early  winter  had  covered  and  concealed  all 
his  rakings  of  dry  grass  and  other  signs  of  his 
presence,  therefore  he  thought  himself  se 
cured  from  molestation.  There  he  lay  most 
of  the  time  in  a  deep  sleep. 

The  Sechangu  Sioux  never  altogether 
leave  this  region.  It  is  true  that  many  wan 
der  away  to  the  Missouri,  the  Muddy  Water, 
or  follow  the  buffalo  down  to  the  Platte  River, 
but  some  would  always  rather  trust  to  the 
winter  hunt  upon  this  familiar  stream.  This 
winter,  High  Head,  with  his  little  band  of 
eleven  men,  was  wintering  at  the  old  place. 
Among  them  was  Zechah,  a  renowned  hunt 
er,  who  had  followed  this  band  because  of 
his  love  for  Hintola,  the  chief's  daughter. 
It  had  been  a  long  courtship,  but  they  were 
married  at  last.  Zechah 's  skill  had  been 
proved  by  his  father-in-law,  and  the  arrow 
161 


Red    Hunters    evnd  the   Animal   People 

test  was  only  sport  to  him.  His  unerring 
aim  was  now  the  pride  of  the  old  chief. 

The  party  encamped  on  the  Little  Rose 
bud  had  eaten  all  of  their  fresh  meat.  They 
must  seek  for  game.  Accordingly,  three 
teepees  went  farther  up  the  river.  The  win 
ter  was  wellnigh  over  when  there  came  a 
heavy  thaw,  and  snow-shoes  were  made  for 
the  use  of  the  hunters. 

They  pitched  the  teepees,  looking  like  a 
trio  of  white  conical  bowlders,  in  a  well- 
protected  bottom.  Winding  gulches  diverged 
from  the  main  stream  like  the  ribs  of  a  huge 
snake,  until  they  lost  themselves  in  the  hills. 
These  dry  creek-beds  were  sentinelled  by 
cedar- trees,  erect  and  soldier-like,  which  at 
a  distance  looked  very  black,  but  near  by 
they  appeared  green. 

The  party  was  cheerful.  High  Head  was 
in  the  best  of  spirits,  telling  the  history,  tra 
ditions  and  legends  of  the  region. 

"This,"  said  he,  "is  the  country  of  the 
wild  tribes  who  walk  with  four  feet.  It  is 
the  home  of  those  people  of  unknown  lan 
guage.  It  has  never  been  said  that  one 
could  starve  upon  the  Little  Rosebud.  In 
the  summer  it  is  the  land  of  battles,  both 
162 


Hoota.y  of  the   Little   Rosebud 

among  the  wild  tribes  and  among  men.  In 
the  winter- time  there  is  peace." 

At  this  moment  a  solitary  singer,  stand 
ing  on  the  brink  of  a  high  cliff  behind  and 
above  the  teepees,  broke  into  a  weird  and 
doleful  chant. 

"  List  en  to  the  warriors,  the  song  of  the 
warriors  of  Wazeyah,  the  god  of  cold  and 
storm!"  Thus  he  sang  in  a  high,  minor  key, 
with  sudden  drops  to  lower  notes  and  in 
flections. 

When  he  ceased  silence  reigned,  except 
for  the  occasional  snapping  of  a  burning 
ember. 

Presently  the  watcher  descended  and  made 
his  report.  "There  is  a  great  wind  and 
snow  coming.  Our  ponies  are  some  distance 
away.  We  shall  not  be  able  to  find  them 
all  for  the  darkness  and  the  storm-wind  ap 
proaching." 

"Ho,  ho,"  spoke  High  Head,  confidently. 
"It  is  not  bad.  We  shall  eat  meat  to-mor 
row.  The  snow  will  be  deep,  and  my  son- 
in-law  will  have  the  easier  hunting.  It  may 
be  that  I  myself  will  lasso  a  great  bear," 
chuckled  the  old  man. 

It  snowed  and  the  wind  blew  on  that  night 


Red    Hunters   a.nd  the   Animal  People 

and  for  four  nights  following.  The  little 
store  of  dried  meat  that  they  had  brought 
with  them  was  entirely  exhausted.  On  the 
fifth  day  they  all  sat  looking  silently  into  the 
fire.  Their  faces  were  worn  and  haggard. 
The  children  cried  for  food,  but  there  was  no 
food.  Wazeyah,  the  god  of  winter,  still 
waged  war,  and  the  snow  was  piled  high 
around  their  teepees. 

Night  came,  the  darkness  fell  heavily,  and 
terrified  them  with  the  thought  of  death 
around  their  feeble  fires.  Famine  was  sitting 
among  them  with  a  stern  face.  At  last  all 
but  two  rolled  themselves  in  their  warm 
buffalo-robes  and  lay  down.  Even  should 
the  storm  cease,  they  feared  that  none  now 
was  strong  enough  to  hunt. 

Zechah  sat  beside  his  young  wife,  gazing 
into  the  fire.  "  It  will  be  sad  news  for  my 
father  that  I  died  of  starvation  upon  the 
Little  Rosebud,"  he  mused.  "It  will  be 
told  for  generations  to  come,  whenever  they 
camp  at  this  place." 

When  at  last  he  lay  noiselessly  down,  he 
could  not  sleep.  Looking  up  through  the 
smoke-hole,  he  sang  a  hunting  song  to  him 
self  in  an  undertone: 

164 


Hoota.y   of   the   Little    Rosebud 

"The  wind  brings  the  secret  news — good  news  of 

the  hunting  ! 
It  is  a  scent  —  it  may  be  a  trail  —  it  may  be  a 

sound  of  the  game! 

Whatever  it  be,  it  is  a  clew  to  the  hunter, 
A  sign  from  above  to  appease  hunger,  to  save 

life!" 

Singing  thus,  Zechah  had  forgotten  that  he 
was  hungry,  when  all  at  once  he  saw  a  bright 
star  through  the  smoke-hole.  He  had  not 
noticed  that  the  wind  had  ceased  to  blow. 

The  hunter  arose  softly,  put  on  fur-lined 
moccasins,  and  girded  himself  with  a  strong 
strap  over  his  lightest  robe.  He  took  his 
knife,  a  bow,  and  quiver  full  of  arrows,  and 
set  out  through  the  gray,  frosty  air. 

It  was  now  almost  daylight.  The  rocks 
and  pines  were  robed  in  white,  like  spirits. 
The  snow  was  deep  and  heavy  under  Ze- 
chah's  feet,  but  he  was  determined  to  succeed. 
He  followed  the  ridges  where  the  snow  was 
well  blown  off.  He  had  forgotten  his  own 
hunger  and  weakness,  and  thought  only  of 
the  famishing  people  for  him  to  serve. 

Above  the  eastern  hills  the  day  was  com 
ing  fast.  The  hunter  hurried  toward  the 
gulches  where  he  knew  the  game  was  wont 

165 


R.ed   Hunters    and  the   Animal   People 

to  be.  Just  as  he  reached  the  higher  ridges 
the  sun  appeared  over  the  hills,  and  Zechah 
came  upon  the  track  of  another  early  hunter. 
It  was  Shunkmanitoo,  the  gray  wolf.  He 
followed  the  trail  until  he  came  out  upon  a 
hill  overlooking  a  deep  gulch.  He  could 
only  see  the  tips  of  the  pines  along  its  course. 
At  a  little  distance,  Shunkmanitoo  sat  upon 
his  haunches,  apparently  awaiting  Zechah. 
Again  he  took  the  lead  and  the  wild  hunter 
followed.  The  wolf  looked  back  now  and 
then  as  if  to  see  whether  the  man  were  com 
ing. 

At  last  he  paused  upon  a  projecting  bank 
commanding  the  bottom  of  the  gulch.  The 
Sioux  approached  him.  When  he  had  come 
very  near,  the  wolf  went  on  down  the  slope. 

"Hi,  hi!"  Zechah  spoke  his  thanks  with 
arms  outstretched  toward  the  rising  sun. 
Through  a  rift  in  the  bank  he  saw  a  lone 
bison,  ploughing  up  the  deep  snow  in  search 
of  grass.  He  was  well  covered  with  snow 
and  had  not  seen  the  two  hunters  appear 
above.  Zechah  at  once  dodged  backward  in 
order  to  approach  his  game  behind  cover  and 
stealthily. 

He  was  now  almost  over  the  gulch,  partly 
166 


Hoot^y   of  the   Little   Hosebud 

concealed  by  a  bunch  of  dead  thistles.  There 
was  no  suspicion  in  the  mind  of  Tatanka. 
Zechah  examined  his  arrows  and  bow.  He 
placed  the  sharpest  one  to  his  bow-string,  and 
with  all  the  strength  that  he  could  muster 
he  let  the  arrow  fly.  In  another  instant  he 
saw  Tatanka  snort  and  plough  up  the  snow 
like  mad,  with  the  arrow  buried  deep  in  his 
side.  The  bison  did  not  know  who  or  what 
had  dealt  him  such  a  deadly  thrust.  He  ran 
in  a  circle  and  fell  upon  the  snow,  while  blood 
coursed  from  his  nostrils,  staining  its  white 
ness. 

Zechah  was  almost  overcome  by  his  good- 
fortune.  Again  he  held  his  right  hand 
outstretched  toward  the  sun,  and  stood 
motionless. 

"Hi,  hi,  hi,  hi!  tunkashela!"  Thus  he 
blessed  the  Father  of  all. 

When  the  March  thaw  set  in,  the  snow  was 
melted  off  the  south  side  of  the  hills.  Hootay 
had  doubtless  had  this  danger  in  mind,  for 
he  could  not  have  selected  a  more  excellent 
place  to  avoid  the  catastrophe.  But,  alas! 
the  best  calculations  will  sometimes  mis 
carry.  It  was  nothing  more  than  a  stray  root 
167 


R.ed   Hunters    a.rvd   the   Animal   People 

of  the  cedar-tree  at  his  door  which  deviated 
the  course  of  the  water,  running  harmlessly 
down  the  hill,  into  Hootay's  home.  In  a 
short  time  the  old  medicine-man  was  com 
pelled  to  come  out,  drenching  wet. 

He  sat  down  on  a  dry  corner  of  the  mound 
to  meditate  upon  his  future  course.  In  his 
younger  days  he  would  have  thought  nothing 
of  this  misfortune,  but  now  he  was  old  and 
rheumatic.  No  inhabitant  of  that  country 
knew  better  than  he  that  it  is  not  safe  to  sleep 
in  the  woods  on  the  bottom-lands  in  the 
spring  of  the  year .  Hootay  is  a  boastful  hunt 
er,  often  over  -  confident,  yet  wise  in  wood 
craft,  and  what  he  has  once  learned  he  never 
forgets.  He  knew  that  when  a  thaw  comes 
all  the  hills  contribute  their  snow  and  water 
to  the  Little  Rosebud,  and  for  a  few  days  it 
runs  a  mighty  river.  Even  Chapa,  the  bea 
ver,  is  wont  at  such  times  to  use  his  utmost 
precautions  to  guard  against  disaster. 

Hootay  carefully  considered  the  direction 
of  the  wind,  sniffed  the  air  to  discover  if  any 
other  wild  hunter  were  near,  and  finally  set 
out  in  a  southwesterly  direction  toward  the 
head  of  the  Little  Rosebud. 

He  had  not  gone  far  when  he  felt  that  he 
168 


Hoote^y  of   the   Little  Rosebud 

was  scarcely  equal  to  tramping  through  the 
slush  and  mud.  More  than  this,  he  was 
leaving  too  broad  a  trail  behind  him.  These 
considerations  led  him  along  the  pine  ridges, 
and  for  this  course  there  was  still  another 
reason.  He  was  hungry  now,  but  there  was 
little  hope  of  meeting  with  any  big  game. 
Along  the  ridges  there  is  early  exposure  of 
the  ground  where  edible  roots  may  be  ob 
tained,  and  where  he  hoped  also  to  find  dry 
bedding. 

He  had  fair  success  in  this,  and  had  made 
himself  somewhat  comfortable  when  the  bliz 
zard  set  in.  He  had  found  tolerable  shelter 
but  very  little  food,  and  since  his  winter  rest 
was  so  unexpectedly  broken  up,  food  he  must 
have.  As  soon  as  the  storm  ceased,  he  had 
to  venture  out  in  search  of  it.  He  could  no 
longer  depend  upon  roots — the  snow  was  far 
too  deep  for  that.  He  must  catch  what  he 
could.  The  old  fellow  was  now  almost  hope 
lessly  slow  and  weak,  but  he  still  had  a  good 
deal  of  confidence  in  himself. 

He    waded    clumsily    through    the    deep 

snow,  following  a  dry  creek-bed;  and,  now 

and   then,    from   force   of   habit,    he   would 

stealthily  climb  the  bank  and  scan  the  field 

12  169 


R.ed   Hunters   a.nd   the   AnimaJ   People 

above  and  below  before  exposing  himself. 
This  was  partly  for  self -protection  and  partly 
in  the  hope  of  surprising  his  game. 

Presently  Hootay  came  upon  the  footprint 
of  another  hunter.  He  snarled  and  put  his 
muzzle  closer  to  the  trail  when  he  detected 
the  hateful  odor  of  man.  At  the  same  in 
stant  he  smelled  fresh  meat. 

The  very  smell  seemed  to  give  him  a  new 
lease  of  life,  for  he  sat  up  on  his  haunches  and 
began  sniffing  the  air  eloquently.  His  hair 
was  as  shaggy  as  that  of  an  old  buffalo-robe, 
and  his  age  and  sitting  posture  made  his 
hump  appear  very  prominent. 

"Waugh,  waugh!"  the  old  man  grunted, 
with  an  air  of  disgust,  for  there  came  to  his 
nose  a  strong  human  scent  mingled  with  the 
savory  odor  of  the  life-giving  meat. 

Zechah  distinctly  heard  the  snort  of  a 
bear.  He  seized  his  bow  and  quiver  full  of 
arrows. 

" Can  it  be  that  Hootay  is  near?"  he  mut 
tered  to  himself.  "He  may  perhaps  add 
my  scalp  to  the  many  that  he  has  taken  of 
my  people,  but  I  will  first  send  an  arrow  of 
mine  into  his  body!" 

He  rested  his  bow  upon  the  shaggy  head 
170 


Hootaty  of  the  Little   Rosebud 

of  the  dead  bull,  and  went  on  skinning  it 
with  a  large  knife,  working  rapidly.  Pres 
ently  the  gray  wolf  approached  from  an 
other  direction. 

"Ho,  kola,  you  have  guided  me  to  game! 
It  is  yours  and  mine.  You,  too,  shall  have 
meat,"  he  said. 

As  soon  as  he  had  skinned  one  side,  Ze- 
chah  cut  off  a  generous  piece  and  walked  tow 
ard  Shunkmanitoo,  who  was  sitting  upon  his 
haunches,  watching  him  work  in  that  won 
derful  way  with  a  single  sharp  thing  in  his 
hand.  But  he  did  not  think  it  best  to  trust 
the  wild  man  too  far,  for  he  still  carried  that 
sharp  thing  in  his  hand  as  he  approached  him 
with  the  meat.  He  arose  and  moved  back 
ward  a  few  paces. 

"  Do  not  fear,  kola!  Warriors  and  hunt 
ers  like  ourselves  must  have  faith  in  each 
other  when  they  work  together  for  a  good 
cause,"  the  Red  man  said,  again.  He  placed 
the  meat  upon  the  snow  where  Shunkmanitoo 
had  been  sitting,  and  returned  to  his  work. 

After  a  time,  and  with  apparent  reluctance, 

the  big,  burly  wolf  came  back  to  his  meat 

and    examined    it.     At   last   he    ate    of   it. 

It  was  good.     He  no  longer  feared  the  wild 

171 


R_ed    Hunters    evnd   the   AnimaJ   People 

man.  From  time  to  time  Zechah  would 
throw  him  a  piece  of  meat  until  he  was 
satisfied. 

The  hunter  had  cleared  away  the  snow 
around  the  buffalo,  which  was  now  cut  up  in 
convenient  pieces  for  carrying.  He  was  ex 
ceedingly  hungry.  He  had,  indeed,  eaten 
a  piece  of  the  liver,  which  the  Sioux  always 
eats  raw,  but  this  only  served  to  sharpen  his 
appetite.  He  had  heavy  work  before  him, 
for  he  must  take  some  of  the  meat  home  to 
his  starving  wife,  and  then  bring  as  many  of 
the  people  as  were  able  to  walk  to  carry  the 
rest  to  camp.  There  were  plenty  of  dry 
boughs  of  the  pine.  He  made  a  fire  by  rub 
bing  together  the  pieces  of  dry  cedar -wood 
which  every  Indian  hunter  of  that  day  car 
ried  with  him,  and,  broiling  strips  of  the 
savory  meat  upon  live  coals,  he  ate  of  it 
heartily. 

Suddenly  a  fearful  growl  was  heard.  Ze 
chah  had  dismissed  the  idea  of  a  bear  from 
his  mind  as  soon  as  his  friend  Shunkmanitoo 
appeared.  He  was  taken  by  surprise.  When 
he  looked  up,  Hootay  was  almost  upon  him. 
He  came  forward  with  his  immense  jaws  wide 
open,  his  shaggy  hair  making  him  look  as 
172 


Hootay  of  the   Little   Rosebud 

big  as  a  buffalo  bull  against  the  clear  white 
ness  of  the  landscape. 

Shunkmanitoo's  chance  was  small.  He  oc 
cupied  the  only  road  to  Zechah's  position, 
and  there  were  perpendicular  walls  of  snow 
on  either  side  of  him.  His  only  hope  lay  in 
his  quickness  and  agility.  As  Hootay  rushed 
madly  upon  him  with  uplifted  paw,  the  wolf 
sprang  nimbly  to  one  side  and  well  up  on  the 
snow-bank.  His  assailant  had  to  content 
himself  with  raking  down  the  snow,  and  in 
the  effort  he  plunged  into  a  heavy  drift  from 
which  he  was  unable  to  drag  himself. 

Hootay  was  in  sad  trouble,  for  he  had 
tumbled  right  into  a  deep  gully  filled  to  the 
brim  with  soft  snow,  and  the  more  he  strug 
gled  the  deeper  he  was  sinking.  Zechah  per 
ceived  the  situation,  and  made  ready  to  send 
the  fatal  arrow. 

Hootay  waved  his  right  paw  pitifully. 
There  was  something  human-like  about  him. 
The  Indian's  heart  beat  fast  with  excitement. 
Weakened  by  his  long  fast,  he  scarcely  saw 
or  heard  clearly,  but,  according  to  the  tra 
ditions  of  his  people,  the  old  bear  addressed 
him  in  these  words: 

"No,  Zechah,  spare  an  old  warrior's  life! 
173 


R.ed   Hunters    Qtnd   the  AnimaJ   People 

My  spirit  shall  live  again  in  you.  You  shall 
be  henceforth  the  war  prophet  and  medicine 
man  of  your  tribe.  I  will  remain  here,  so 
that  your  people  may  know  that  you  have 
conquered  Hootay,  the  chief  of  the  Little 
Rosebud  country." 

It  is  not  certain  that  he  really  said  this, 
but  such  was  the  belief  of  the  hunter.  He 
put  his  arrow  back  in  the  quiver,  and  im 
mediately,  according  to  custom,  he  took  his 
pipe  from  his  belt  and  smoked  the  pipe  of 
peace. 

A  huge  piece  of  meat  was  suspended  from 
his  shoulders  above  the  quiver,  and,  with  his 
bow  firmly  grasped  in  the  right  hand,  Ze- 
chah  addressed  his  friend  Shunkmanitoo : 

"Ho,  kola,  you  have  eaten  what  is  yours; 
leave  mine  for  my  starving  people!" 

The  wolf  got  up  .and  trotted  away  as  if  he 
understood,  while  Zechah  hurried  back  on 
his  own  trail  with  tidings  of  life  and  happi 
ness. 

He  ran  as  often  as  he  came  to  open  ground, 
and  in  a  short  time  stood  upon  the  top  of  the 
hill  with  the  little  group  of  teepees  just  be 
low  him.  The  smoke  from  each  arose  sadly 
in  a  straight  column,  tapering  upward  until 


Hootay  of  the   Little   Rosebud 

lost  in  the  blue.  Not  a  soul  stirred  and  all 
was  quiet  as  the  dead. 

"Ho,  he  ya  hay!"  the  hunter  chanted 
aloud,  and  ended  with  a  war-whoop.  Out  of 
the  sleepy -looking  teepees  there  came  a  rush 
of  men  and  women.  Old  High  Head  ap 
peared  with  outstretched  hands,  singing 
and  pouring  forth  praises.  "Hi,  hi,  hi,  hi!" 
he  uttered  his  thanks,  in  a  powerful  voice, 
still  stretching  his  arms  to  heaven. 

Hintola  was  the  quietest  and  most  com 
posed  of  them  all.  She  went  first  to  meet 
her  husband,  for  it  was  the  custom  that,  when 
the  son  -  in  -  law  returns  with  game,  his  wife 
must  meet  him  outside  the  camp  and  bring 
back  food  to  her  parents. 

Having  distributed  the  meat  in  small 
pieces,  High  Head  announced  his  son-in- 
law's  success  as  a  hunter,  and  solicited  all 
who  were  able  to  join  him  in  going  after  the 
remainder.  He  ended  with  a  guttural  song 
of  cheer  and  gladness. 

It  was  then  Zechah  told  of  his  meeting 
with  the  other  wild  hunters,  and  how  Hoo- 
tay  was  conquered  and  imprisoned  in  the 
snow. 

"Ugh,  ugh!"  grunted  High  Head,  with 
175 


Red   Hunters  a.nd  the  AnimaJ   People 

much  satisfaction.  "This  means  a  war- 
bonnet  for  my  son-in-law — a  story  for  com 
ing  generations!" 

But  the  hunter  did  not  repeat  the  bear's 
words  to  himself  until  he  had  become  a  fa 
mous  war  prophet.  When  'the  people  went 
after  the  meat,  they  found  the  old  warrior 
lying  dead  without  a  wound,  and  with  one 
accord  they  made  a  proper  offering  in  his 
honor. 


The  River  People 


AVAY  up  the  Pipestone  Creek,  within 
sight  of  the  Great  Pipestone  Quarry, 
lived  old  Chapawee  and  her  old  man  Hezee, 
of  the  beaver  tribe.  Unlike  some  of  their 
neighbors,  they  had  emigrated  from  a  great 
distance.  They  had,  therefore,  much  valu 
able  experience ;  and  this  experience  was  not 
theirs  alone — it  was  shared  with  their  im 
mediate  family.  Hence  their  children  and 
their  children's  children  were  uncommonly 
wise. 

They  had  come  to  this  country  many 
years  before,  and  had  established  their  home 
in  this  ancient  and  much-prized  resort  of  the 
two-legged  tribe.  Around  the  Pipestone 
Quarry  the  wild  Red  men  would  camp  in 
large  numbers  every  summer,  and  it  seemed 
that  the  oldest  beaver  could  not  remember 
a  time  when  they  were  not  there.  Their 
177 


R.ed   Hunters    a.nd   the  Animal   People 

noisy  ways  were  terrible  indeed  to  the  river 
people,  who  are  a  quiet  folk. 

It  was  the  custom  with  this  simple  and 
hard-working  pair  to  build  a  very  warm 
house  for  themselves.  In  fact,  they  had  both 
summer  and  winter  homes,  besides  many 
supply  and  store  houses.  Their  dam  was 
always  in  perfect  order,  and  their  part  of  the 
creek  was  the  deepest  and  clearest,  therefore 
their  robe  of  furs  was  of  the  finest.  If  any 
of  the  Hezee  band  was  ever  killed  by  the  two- 
legs,  their  fur  was  highly  valued. 

Chapawee  always  insisted  upon  two  rooms 
in  her  house :  one  for  herself  and  the  old  man, 
and  one  for  her  yearling  children  who  chose 
to  remain  with  them  for  the  first  winter. 
She  always  built  one  very  large  house,  run 
ning  deep  into  the  bank,  so  that  in  case  of 
overflow  or  freshet  they  would  still  be  safe. 
Besides  the  usual  supply-houses,  she  and  her 
old  man  excavated  several  dining-rooms. 
These  are  simply  pockets  underground  at  the 
edge  of  the  stream.  In  case  of  any  danger 
on  the  surface,  they  could  take  some  food 
from  a  store  -  house  and  carry  it  to  one  of 
these  dining-rooms,  where  it  was  eaten  in 
peace. 

178 


The   River  People 

It  was  the  rule  with  the  old  folks  to  eat 
apart  from  their  year -old  children.  The 
yearlings,  on  the  other  hand,  eat  all  together, 
and  have  as  much  fun  and  freedom  as  they 
please.  Their  merriest  frolics,  however,  are 
in  the  night,  in  and  upon  their  swimming  and 
diving  pond.  Here  they  coast  rapidly  head 
first  down  a  steep  bank  slippery  with  mud, 
lying  upon  their  chests  or  sitting  upon  their 
haunches,  and  at  times  they  even  turn  som 
ersaults  and  perform  other  acrobatic  feats. 
This  coasting  has  a  threefold  object.  It  is 
for  play  and  also  for  practice;  to  learn  the 
art  of  sliding  into  deep  water  without  un 
necessary  noise;  and,  more  than  all,  accord 
ing  to  the  Red  people,  it  is  done  for  the  pur 
pose  of  polishing  and  beautifying  their  long, 
silky  fur. 

The  beaver  tribe  are  considered  wisest  of 
the  smaller  four-legged  tribes,  and  they  are  a 
people  of  great  common-sense.  Even  man 
gains  wisdom  and  philosophy  from  a  study 
of  their  customs  and  manners.  It  is  in  the 
long  winter  nights,  as  is  believed  and  in 
sisted  upon  by  the  wild  Indians,  that  the 
beaver  old  folks  recite  their  legends  to  their 
children  and  grandchildren.  In  this  case  it 
179 


R.ed   Hunters  a.r\d  the   ArvimaJ   People 

was  usually  Chapawee  who  related  the  tra 
ditions  of  her  people  and  her  own  experiences, 
gathering  about  her  all  the  yearlings  and  the 
newly  married  couples,  who  might  take  a 
notion  to  go  off  in  search  of  a  new  claim, 
just  as  she  and  Hezee  did.  So  it  was  well 
that  they  should  thoroughly  understand  the 
ways  and  wisdom  of  their  people. 

To  be  sure,  she  had  breathed  it  into  them 
and  fed  them  with  it  since  before  they  could 
swim ;  yet  she  knew  that  some  things  do  not 
remain  in  the  blood.  There  are  certain 
traits  and  instincts  that  are  very  strong  in 
family  and  tribe,  because  they  refer  to  con 
ditions  that  never  change ;  but  other  matters 
outside  of  these  are  likewise  very  useful  in 
an  emergency. 

Old  Chapawee  could  never  sleep  after  the 
sun  reaches  the  middle  of  the  western  sky  in 
summer.  In  winter  they  all  sleep  pretty 
much  all  of  the  day.  Having  finished  her 
supper  with  Hezee  one  night  under  the  large 
elm-tree  on  the  east  side  of  the  dam,  she 
dove  down  with  a  somersault,  glided  along 
close  to  the  bottom  of  the  pond,  inspecting 
every  pebble  and  stray  chip  from  their  work 
room,  until  she  reached  the  assembly-room, 
180 


The  Reiver  People 

which  might  almost  be  called  a  school-house 
in  the  manner  of  the  paleface. 

She  came  scrambling  up  the  slippery  bank 
to  the  middle  entrance.  No  sooner  had  she 
shaken  off  the  extra  water  from  her  long 
hair  than  Hezee's  gray  mustache  emerged 
from  the  water,  without  exposing  his  head. 
He  was  teasing  the  old  lady,  trying  to  make 
her  believe  there  was  a  crab  in  the  landing. 
Quick  as  a  flash  she  flopped  over  in  the  air 
and  slapped  the  side  of  her  broad  tail  upon 
the  water  where  her  spouse  was  lurking  to 
deceive  her.  Down  he  dove  to  the  bottom 
and  lay  there  motionless  as  if  he  expected 
her  to  hunt  him  up ;  but  after  a  while  he  went 
off  and  notified  all  the  young  people  that  it 
was  time  for  their  gathering  at  the  old  meet 
ing-house. 

Here  Chapawee  occupied  the  place  of  hon 
or,  while  Hezee  filled  the  undignified  position 
of  errand-boy.  All  the  young  beavers  came 
in,  some  still  carrying  a  bit  of  sapling  in 
their  mouths,  but,  on  realizing  their  mistake, 
each  dove  back  to  place  it  where  it  belonged . 
They  arranged  themselves  in  a  circle,  sitting 
upright  on  their  flat  tails  for  cushions,  their 
hands  folded  under  their  chins. 
181 


R.ed   Hunters   o^nd  the   Animal  People 

"A  long  time  ago,"  began  Chapawee,  the 
old  beaver  grandmother,  "we  lived  on  the 
other  side  of  the  Muddy  Water  (the  Missouri), 
upon  a  stream  called  Wakpala  Shecha  (Bad 
River).  Father  and  mother,  with  my  older 
brothers  and  sisters,  built  a  fine  dam  and 
had  a  great  pond  there.  But  we  led  a  hard 
life.  There  are  not  many  ponds  on  Bad 
River  and  the  stream  dries  up  every  summer, 
therefore  thousands  of  buffalo  came  to  our 
place  to  drink.  They  were  very  bad  people. 
It  seems  that  they  do  not  respect  the  laws 
and  customs  of  any  other  nation.  They  used 
to  come  by  the  hundred  into  our  pond  and 
trample  down  our  houses  and  wear  holes  in 
the  banking  of  our  dam.  They  are  so  large 
and  clumsy  that  they  would  put  their  feet 
right  through  the  walls,  and  we  had  to  hide 
in  our  deepest  holes  until  we  were  very  hun 
gry,  waiting  for  them  to  go  away. 

* '  Then  there  were  the  shunktokechas  and 
shungelas  (wolves  and  foxes) ,  who  follow  the 
buffalo.  They,  too,  are  a  bad  and  danger 
ous  sort,  so  that  mother  and  father  had  to  be 
continually  on  the  watch.  We  little  beaver 
children  played  upon  the  dam  only  when 
mother  thought  it  safe.  In  the  night  we 
182 


The   R.iver  People 

used  to  enjoy  our  swimming,  diving,  and 
coasting  school.  We  practised  gnawing 
sticks,  and  the  art  of  making  mud  cement 
that  will  hold  water,  how  to  go  to  the  bottom 
silently,  without  effort,  and  to  spank  the 
water  for  a  signal  or  danger-call  with  our 
tails. 

''There  were  many  other  bad  people  in 
that  country.  There  was  the  ugly  old 
grizzly.  He  would  sometimes  come  to  our 
place  to  swim  and  cool  off.  We  would  not 
mind,  only  he  is  so  treacherous.  He  was 
ready  to  kill  one  of  us  at  any  moment  if  we 
gave  him  the  chance. 

4 'Mother  played  a  trick  on  him  once, 
because  he  was  such  a  nuisance.  He  was 
wont  to  crawl  out  upon  one  of  the  logs 
which  projected  from  the  dam  and  over  the 
deep  water.  This  log  was  braced  by  posts 
in  the  water.  Mother  lay  on  the  bottom 
and  loosened  the  soil  and  then  quickly  pulled 
one.  of  the  posts  away,  and  the  old  grizzly 
fell  in  headlong.  She  dove  to  one  side,  and, 
as  the  old  man  struggled  to  get  out,  crawled 
up  behind  him  and  gashed  one  of  his  hind 
paws  with  her  sharp  wood-choppers.  Oh, 
how  the  old  fellow  howled  and  how  he  scram- 

183 


R.ed  Hunters  a.nd  the   AnimaJ   People 

bled  for  the  dam!  He  groaned  long  as  he 
sat  on  the  bank  and  doctored  his  wounded 
foot.  After  that  he  was  never  again  seen 
to  sit  upon  one  of  our  logs,  but  when  he 
came  to  the  river  to  drink  and  cool  off  his  hot 
paws  he  always  took  the  farthest  point  from 
our  houses,  and  then  he  only  put  one  foot 
in  the  water  at  a  time. 

"Mother  was  dreadfully  afraid  of  one 
wicked  animal.  That  was  Igmu,  the  moun 
tain  lion.  He  does  not  live  in  this  part  of 
the  country,  and  it  is  such  a  relief,"  said  the 
old  beaver  woman.  "Whenever  one  of  the 
Igmus  comes  to  our  place,  we  all  hurry  to 
deep  water  and  lie  there,  for  they  have  been 
known  to  dig  through  the  walls  of  our  houses. 

"There  was  still  another  danger  that  our 
people  had  to  contend  with.  Wakpala 
Shecha  has  a  swift  current  and  a  narrow  bed, 
and  we  had  terrible  freshets  two  or  three 
times  in  a  season. 

"At  last  there  came  a  great  flood.  It  was 
after  I  was  two  years  old  and  had  learned 
everything — how  to  chop  wood,  which  way 
to  fell  the  trees,  and  what  to  store  up  for  the 
winter;  how  to  mix  mud  cement  and  drive 
posts  in  the  creek  bottom,  and  all  of  the 
184 


The   River  People 

other  lessons.  Early  in  the  spring,  while 
there  was  still  snow  on  the  ground,  a  heavy 
rain  came.  Every  dry  gulch  was  a  torrent. 
We  had  never  known  such  a  flood.  It  car 
ried  away  all  our  dams  and  made  our  strong 
est  houses  cave  in.  We  did  not  dare  to  go  to 
shore,  for  we  could  hear  the  wolves  calling 
all  along  the  banks. 

"At  last  mother  and  father  bound  two 
drift-logs  together  with  willow  withes.  We 
all  helped,  as  none  of  us  ever  think  of  being 
idle.  Upon  the  logs  we  made  a  rude  nest, 
and  here  we  all  slept  and  ate  as  we  floated 
down  the  stream. 

"After  several  days  we  came  to  a  heavily 
timbered  bottom  where  there  was  a  very 
large  fallen  tree.  The  roots  held  firmly  to 
the  bank  and  projected  over  the  water.  We 
all  let  go  of  our  raft  and  climbed  upon  it; 
there  were  bushy  branches  at  the  top.  We 
trimmed  the  trunk  of  the  tree  leading  to  dry 
land  and  built  a  temporary  nest  upon  the 
bushy  top,  until  the  water  should  go  down 
and  we  could  find  a  good  place  to  build. 
Mother  and  father  went  down  the  stream  the 
next  night  to  explore  for  a  new  home,  and  I 
was  left  in  the  nest  with  two  brothers.  We, 
185 


Red   Hunters  and  the   Animal   People 

too,  explored  the  shores  and  little  inlets  near 
us,  but  we  all  came  back  to  the  nest  that 
morning  except  mother  and  father.  I  have 
never  seen  them  from  that  day  to  this. 

' '  I  and  my  two  brothers  slept  together  in 
the  warm  nest.  All  at  once  I  felt  a  slight 
jar.  I  opened  my  eyes,  and  there  lay  upon 
the  trunk  of  our  tree  a  fierce  Igmu,  ready 
to  fish  us  out  with  his  strong  arm  and  hooked 
claws. 

''Kerchunk!  I  dropped  into  the  deep 
stream  to  save  my  life.  I  swam  a  little  way, 
and  then  came  to  the  surface  and  peeped 
back.  Ah,  I  saw  him  seize  and  violently 
dash  one  of  my  brothers  against  the  tree,  but 
the  other  I  did  not  see.  Perhaps  he  did  as 
I  did  to  save  himself. 

"  I  went  down  the  Bad  River  until  I  came 
to  the  Big  Muddy.  Ice  was  floating  in  huge 
cakes  upon  the  brown  flood.  I  wanted  to 
go,  too,  for  I  had  heard  of  a  country  far  to 
the  sunrise  of  the  great  river.  I  climbed 
upon  a  floating  ice-cake,  and  I  moved  on 
down  the  Muddy  Water. 

"I  kept  a  close  watch  on  the  shores,  hop 
ing  to  see  father  and  mother,  but  I  saw  no 
sign  of  them.  I  passed  several  islands,  but 
186 


The  River  People 

the  shores  were  loose  sand.  It  was  not  the 
kind  of  soil  in  which  our  people  build,  so  I 
did  not  stop,  although  there  were  fine  tall 
cotton  woods  and  all  the  kinds  of  trees  that 
we  eat.  Besides,  I  did  not  care  to  go  to 
shore  or  up  the  mouths  of  any  of  the  creeks 
unless  I  should  discover  signs  of  our  tribe. 
It  was  the  first  time  in  my  life  that  I  had 
ever  been  alone. 

"  So  I  kept  on  my  ice-boat  until  I  was  out 
of  food,  and  then  I  stopped  at  an  island.  I 
swam  near  the  shore  to  find  a  good  landing, 
and  when  I  reached  the  bank  I  saw  the  foot 
prints  of  a  beaver  man.  My  heart  beat 
hard,  and  I  could  hardly  believe  my  eyes. 
Some  one  had  cut  down  a  fresh  sapling,  and 
as  I  ate  of  the  delicious  bark  and  twigs  I  was 
watching  for  him  every  moment.  But  he 
did  not  come. 

"  Then  I  went  back  to  the  water's  edge  to 
study  the  trail  and  see  where  he  went.  I 
found  to  my  disappointment  that  he  had 
gone  back  to  the  water.  As  my  mother  had 
taught  me  every  beaver  sign,  I  knew  he 
was  a  traveller,  come  to  take  food,  as  I 
was.  Hoping  to  overtake  him,  I  hurried 
back  to  another  floating  cake  of  ice,  and 
187 


R.ed   Hunters   e^nd   the   Animal   People 

again  I  found  myself  going  down  the  big 
stream. 

"When  I  came  in  sight  of  another  island, 
I  watched  carefully  and  saw  some  one  mov 
ing  on  the  shore.  I  was  not  hungry  then, 
but  I  landed  and  began  to  nibble  a  twig  at 
the  water's  edge.  Presently  I  saw  a  beau 
tiful  young  man  coming  toward  me  with  a 
fine  sapling  in  his  mouth.  I  think  I  never 
saw  a  nicer  looking  beaver  man  than  Kam- 
doka!  He,  too,  was  so  glad  to  see  me,  and 
brought  me  the  sapling  to  eat. 

"We  were  soon  so  devoted  and  absorbed 
in  each  other  that  we  forgot  all  about  our 
journey.  Kamdoka  proposed  that  we  should 
never  leave  one  another,  and  I  agreed.  He 
at  once  built  a  rude  house  right  under  a  high 
bank,  where  a  tree  had  fallen  over  the  water 
and  its  roots  still  held  firm.  On  each  side  he 
planted  double  rows  of  sticks,  and  plastered 
the  whole  with  mud.  The  narrow  door  was 
concealed  by  the  tree-trunk,  and  led  directly 
into  the  water.  This  was  our  first  home. 
It  was  only  for  a  few  days,  for  we  soon  dis 
covered  that  we  could  not  live  there. 

' '  There  were  still  a  lew  large  cakes  of  ice 
going  down  the  river,  and  on  these  we  con- 
188 


The  River  People 

tinned  our  journey,  until  one  night  our  ice 
broke  up  and  we  were  forced  to  swim.  At 
last  we  came  to  a  country  which  was  just 
such  as  we  would  like  to  live  in,  and  a  stream 
that  seemed  the  very  one  we  had  been  dream 
ing  about.  It  had  good,  firm  banks,  nice 
landings,  and  was  just  small  enough  to  dam 
if  necessary.  Kamdoka  and  I  were  very 
happy.  This  stream  the  Red  people  call 
the  Wakpaepakshan  (Bend  of  the  River). 

* '  It  was  not  long  before  the  wild  men  came 
in  great  numbers  to  this  beautiful  river,  and 
they  were  worse  than  Igmu  and  the  grizzly. 
With  their  round  iron  with  the  iron  strings 
they  caught  many  of  the  beaver  neighbors. 
Sometimes  they  would  come  with  their  dogs 
and  drive  us  out  of  our  houses  with  dry  en 
trances;  again,  they  would  hide  the  round 
iron  at  our  coasting  and  diving  places,  so 
that  they  caught  many  of  our  people.  It  is 
impossible  to  get  away  when  one  is  bitten 
by  one  of  these  round  irons.  It  was  this 
which  forced  us  at  last  to  leave  this  lovely 
spot. 

"While  we  still  lived  upon  this  stream,  it 
came  about  that  Kamdoka  was  called  Hezee. 
His  fine  pair  of  wood-choppers  had  grown 
189 


R.ed   Hunters  a^nd   the   Animal   People 

short  and  very  yellow — that  is  why  he  is 
called  Hezee — Yellow  Teeth.  Hezee  and  I 
forsook  our  home  after  our  little  Chapchin- 
cha  was  caught  by  the  wild  men.  Hezee' s 
sharp  eyes  discovered  one  of  these  ugly  irons 
on  our  premises,  and  he  reported  it  to  me.  I 
cautioned  the  children  to  be  careful,  and  for 
a  time  they  were  so,  but  one  morning  my 
baby,  my  little  Chapchincha,  forgot,  and, 
plunging  blindly  down  from  our  landing,  she 
was  seized !  They  took  her  away  with  them, 
and  the  very  next  night  we  moved  from  that 
place. 

"We  found  the  mouth  of  this  stream  and 
followed  it  up.  We  selected  many  pretty 
places,  but  they  were  all  claimed  by  some  of 
the  older  inhabitants.  Several  times  Hezee 
fought  for  the  right  to  a  home,  and  you  can 
see  where  he  had  an  ear  bitten  off  in  one  of 
these  fights.  We  had  no  peace  until  we 
came  within  sight  of  the  Pipestone  Quarry. 
To  be  sure,  there  are  many  wild  men  here 
also,  but  they  come  in  midsummer,  when  they 
do  not  kill  any  beaver  people.  We  simply 
keep  close  to  our  homes  when  they  are  here, 
and  they  scarcely  ever  trouble  us. 

"  Children,  we  have  made  many  fine  homes, 
190 


The  River  People 

Hezee  and  I.  We  both  came  from  beyond 
the  Muddy  Water — a  very  bad  country.  It 
is  the  country  of  coyotes,  bears,  bighorns,  and 
the  like.  This  is  a  country  for  our  people. 
If  any  of  you  should  be  dissatisfied,  or  driven 
to  leave  your  home,  do  not  go  beyond  the 
Muddy  Water.  Always  take  one  of  the 
large  streams,  going  to  the  south  and  the 
sunrise  of  the  great  river. 

"You  see  my  fingers  getting  stubby  and 
nailless.  Hezee' s  wood-choppers  are  no  long 
er  sharp.  His  long  mustache  is  gray  now. 
We  are  getting  old.  But  we  have  lived 
happily,  Hezee  and  I.  We  have  raised 
many  beaver  people.  We  shall  hope  never 
to  go  away  from  this  place. 

"  Children,  be  true  to  the  customs  of  your 
people.  Always  have  good  homes.  First  of 
all,  you  must  build  a  strong  dam — then  you 
will  have  deep  water.  You  must  have  both 
underground  homes  and  adobes .  Have  plen 
ty  of  store-houses,  well  filled;  and  when  the 
enemy  comes  to  kill  you,  you  can  hold  out  for 
many  days." 

These  were  the  old  beaver  woman's  words 
to  her  young  people.      ''Ho,  ho!"  they  ap 
plauded  her  when  she  had  done. 
191 


Red    Hunters    and  the  AnimaJ  People 

"You  must  learn  all  these  things,"  said 
old  Hezee,  after  his  wife  had  done.  "Al 
ways  gnaw  your  tree  more  on  the  side  tow 
ard  the  stream,  so  that  it  will  fall  over  the 
water.  You  should  cut  down  the  trees  on 
the  very  edge  of  the  bank.  Dive  to  the 
bottom  and  under  the  bank  as  the  tree  falls. 
Sometimes  one  of  us  is  pinned  down  by  a 
branch  of  a  fallen  tree  and  dies  there.  I 
myself  have  seen  this.  The  water  is  the 
safest  place.  You  must  never  go  too  far 
away  from  deep  water." 

Up  and  down  Pipestone  Creek  for  four  or 
five  miles  spread  the  community  formed  by 
Chapawee's  and  Hezee' s  descendants.  There 
was  not  any  large  timber,  only  a  few  scattered 
trees  here  and  there,  yet  in  most  places  there 
was  plenty  of  food,  for  the  river  people  do 
not  depend  entirely  upon  the  bark  of  trees 
for  their  sustenance.  No  village  was  kept 
in  better  order  than  this  one,  for  it  was  the 
wisdom  of  Chapawee  and  Hezee  that  made 
it  so.  Summer  nights,  the  series  of  ponds 
was  alive  with  their  young  folks  in  play  and 
practice  of  the  lessons  in  which  the  old  pair 
had  such  a  pride.  Their  stream  overflowed 
with  the  purest  of  spring  water.  No  fish 
192 


The   River  People 

were  allowed  to  pollute  their  playgrounds. 
The  river  people  do  not  eat  fish,  but  no  fish 
are  found  in  their  neighborhoods.  If  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Otter,  with  their  five  or  six  roguish 
children,  occasionally  intruded  upon  their 
domain,  the  men  of  the  tribe  politely  re 
quested  them  to  go  elsewhere.  So  for  a  long 
time  they  held  sway  on  the  Pipestone  Creek, 
and  the  little  beaver  children  dove  and 
swam  undisturbed  for  many  summers. 

But  Chapawee  and  Hezee  were  now  very 
old.  They  occupied  a  pond  to  themselves. 
Both  were  half  blind  and  toothless,  but  there 
were  certain  large  weeds  which  were  plenti 
ful  and  afforded  them  delicious  food.  They 
remained  in-doors  a  great  deal  of  the  time. 

"Ho,  koda!"  was  the  greeting  of  two 
Indian  men  who  appeared  one  day  at  the 
door  of  the  old  American  Fur  Company's 
store  upon  the  Sioux  reservation  in  Minne 
sota. 

"How,  Red  Blanket!  How,  One  Feath 
er!"  was  the  reply  of  the  trader.  "Isn't  it 
about  time  for  you  people  to  start  in  on 
your  fall  trapping?" 

"Yes,  that  is  what  we  came  for.  We 
193 


Red   Hunters  a.nd  the   Animal   People 

want  traps,  ammunition,  and  two  spades 
on  account.  We  have  learned  from  the 
prairie  Indians  that  the  Big  Sioux  and  its 
tributaries  are  full  of  beaver,  otter,  mink, 
and  musk-rats.  We  shall  go  into  that  re 
gion  for  two  months'  hunting,"  said  Red 
Blanket,  speaking  for  the  two.  Both  men 
were  experienced  trappers. 

"  We  must  strike  the  Pipestone  Quarry 
and  then  follow  down  that  stream  to  its 
mouth,"  remarked  One  Feather  to  his  friend, 
after  they  had  returned  to  camp  with  a  load 
of  goods  that  they  had  secured  on  credit, 
and  had  cut  up  some  of  the  tobacco  for 
smoking. 

A  few  days  later  two  solitary  teepees 
stood  on  the  shore  of  the  pond,  under  the 
red  cliffs  of  the  Pipestone  Quarry. 

Red  Blanket  had  gone  down  the  stream 
to  examine  the  signs.  Toward  evening,  he 
came  in  with  a  large  beaver  on  his  shoulder. 
"  Koda,  the  stream  is  alive  with  beaver! 
I  saw  all  of  their  dams  and  their  houses,  and 
many  were  out  swimming  without  fear. 
They  have  not  been  disturbed  in  many 
years." 

Soon  both  hunters  emerged  from  their 
194 


The  River  People 

teepees  heavily  laden  with  traps,  each  man 
accompanied  by  his  intelligent  dog.  They 
saw  many  fresh  tracks  of  the  inhabitants  as 
they  approached  the  beaver  village.  Their 
houses  above  ground  were  large  and  numer 
ous,  and  their  underground  homes  were  as 
many,  but  the  entrances  were  concealed  by 
the  water.  The  slides  were  still  wet  with 
recent  plays. 

"  It  is  the  home  of  their  great  chief,"  said 
Red  Blanket,  impressively.  "  Friend,  let  us 
sit  down  and  offer  the  pipe !  We  must  smoke 
to  the  beaver  chief's  spirit,  that  he  may  not 
cast  an  evil  charm  upon  our  hunting." 

Both  men  sat  down  upon  their  crossed 
feet  in  the  tall  meadow-grass  to  carry  out 
the  familiar  suggestion.  One  Feather  pulled 
the  leather  tobacco-pouch  from  his  hunting- 
belt,  and  filled  the  pipe.  He  held  the  mouth 
piece  to  the  four  corners  of  the  earth  before 
handing  it  to  his  companion.  As  they 
smoked,  their  faces  were  serious,  and  ex 
pressed  the  full  dignity  and  importance 
they  had  given  to  their  intended  massacre 
of  a  harmless  and  wise  people. 

''Let  us  go  down  a  little  way,"  said  One 
Feather,  finally.  "I  want  to  see  how  far 
195 


Red  Hunters    and   the   AnimaJ  People 

the  dams  extend,  and  if  it  is  only  one  family 
or  many." 

When  they  reached  the  second  dam,  the 
pond  contained  very  little  sign  of  beaver. 
There  were  landing  and  feeding  places,  but 
apparently  they  were  not  much  used.  The 
water  was  very  deep  and  clear.  Beyond 
this  pond  were  many  fresh  signs  again. 
This  raised  a  new  question  in  the  minds  of 
the  Red  hunters.  On  the  way  back  again, 
they  stopped  on  the  shore  of  this  pond  and 
smoked  again,  while  they  discussed  why 
there  was  not  much  life  there,  when  there 
was  such  fine,  deep,  clear  water,  and  the 
dams  in  such  perfect  condition. 

"It  may  be  a  haunted  pond,"  said  One 
Feather. 

"  It  is  certain  that  some  strange  thing  lives 
in  this  deep  water,"  added  Red  Blanket, 
with  gravity.  They  were  fully  concealed 
by  the  tall  grass,  and  their  dogs  lay  quietly 
at  their  sides. 

"Look,  my  friend,  it  is  he!"  exclaimed 
One  Feather,  suddenly.  They  quickly  faced 
about  to  behold  an  animal  scramble  up  the 
steep  bank.  Both  of  his  ears  were  entirely 
gone.  The  hair  of  his  head  and  face  was 
196 


The   River  People 

quite  gray,  including  the  few  coarse  whiskers 
that  the  beaver  people  wear.  It  looked  very 
like  the  unshaven  face  of  an  old  man.  The 
hair  of  his  body  was  short  and  rough — the 
silky,  reddish  coat  was  gone. 

"It  is  an  old,  old  beaver,"  whispered  One 
Feather.  "Ah,  he  is  the  grandfather  of  the 
village!  I  see  now  why  this  pond  is  not 
much  used  by  the  young  folks.  The  old 
people  live  here." 

He  was  apparently  half  blind  and  hard  of 
hearing,  as  they  had  made  enough  noise  to 
attract  Hezee's  attention,  but  he  did  not 
move.  Soon  Chapawee  came  up  slowly  and 
sat  beside  her  old  man.  As  the  two  sat 
there,  upright,  sunning  themselves,  there 
came  from  a  distance  an  undertone  call. 
Then  a  large  female  beaver  glided  up  the 
stream,  bearing  in  her  mouth  the  fine,  branchy 
bough  of  a  tree,  which  she  must  have  gone 
some  miles  to  get.  She  approached  the  old 
pair,  and  kindly  set  the  branch  before  them. 
While  they  greedily  nibbled  at  it,  the  young 
woman  quietly  disappeared. 

"These  are  people  much  like  us.     Surely 
they  build  much  warmer  houses  than  we 
do,"  said  Red  Blanket,  laughing. 
197 


Red   Hunters  a.nd  the   Animal   People 

"Yes,  they  are  a  wonderful  people,"  re 
plied  his  friend,  with  a  serious  face.  "This 
is  the  grandmother's  pond.  We  shall  re 
spect  it  to-morrow,"  he  continued.  "We 
shall  open  the  other  dams  and  drain  the 
water  off,  then  the  entrances  will  all  be  dry 
and  our  dogs  will  enter  their  homes  and 
drive  them  out.  When  they  come  out,  we 
shall  spear  them."  This  was  the  plan  of 
One  Feather,  to  which  his  companion  as 
sented. 

It  was  a  sad  day  for  the  river  people. 
Presently  the  two  slayers  came  to  the  pond 
of  Hezee  and  Chapawee,  where  they  lay 
nestled  together  in  their  old,  warm  bed. 

"I  would  like  to  leave  the  two  old  people 
alone,"  said  One  Feather.  "But  we  cannot 
get  at  the  upper  ponds  without  draining  this 
one."  So  it  was  decided  to  break  down 
both  of  their  dams.  When  the  entrance  to 
their  house  was  exposed,  the  dogs  rushed  in 
and  were  beginning  to  bark,  but  One  Feather 
called  them  back. 

The  work  was  accomplished,  but  it  had 
taken  two  days.  It  was  a  sad  massacre! 

"  We  must  repair  the  dam  for  the  old  folks 
before  we  go,  and  I  have  left  four  young 
198 


The  River  People 

ones  alive,  so  that  they  can  help  feed  them. 
I  do  not  want  their  spirits  to  follow  us," 
said  One  Feather.  So  on  the  very  next 
morning  the  two  hunters  came  back  to  the 
middle  pond.  Red  Blanket  with  his  dog 
was  a  little  in  advance. 

"Come  here,  friend!"  he  called.  There 
Hezee  and  Chapawee  lay  cold  and  stiff  in  the 
open. 

They  had  gone  out  in  the  dark  to  rebuild 
their  dam,  according  to  the  habit  of  a  long 
life.  Then  they  visited  some  of  their  chil 
dren's  homes  for  aid,  but  all  were  silent  and 
in  ruins.  Again  they  came  back  to  work, 
but  it  was  all  in  vain.  They  were  too  old; 
their  strength  had  left  them ;  and  who  would 
care  in  such  a  case  to  survive  the  ruins  of  his 
house  ? 


The    Challenge 


THE  medicine  -  drum  was  struck  with 
slow,  monotonous  beat  —  that  sound 
which  always  comes  forth  from  the  council- 
lodge  with  an  impressive  air  of  authority. 
Upon  this  particular  occasion  it  was  merely 
a  signal  to  open  the  ears  of  the  people.  It 
was  the  prelude  to  an  announcement  of  the 
day's  programme,  including  the  names  of 
those  warriors  who  had  been  chosen  to 
supply  the  governing  body  with  food  and 
tobacco  during  that  day.  These  names  were 
presently  announced  in  a  sing-song  or  chant 
ing  call  which  penetrated  to  the  outskirts  of 
the  Indian  village. 

Just  as  Tawahinkpayota,  or  Many  Arrows, 
was  cutting  up  a  large  plug  of  black  tobacco 
— for  he  was  about  to  invite  several  intimate 
friends  to  his  lodge — "Tawahinkpayota, 
anpaytu  lay  woyutay  watinkta  mechecha 
200 


The  Challenge 

uyay  yo-o-o!"  the  sonorous  call,  came  for  the 
second  time.  He  stepped  outside  and  held 
up  an  eagle  feather  tied  to  a  staff.  This  was 
his  answer,  and  signified  his  willingness  to 
perform  the  service. 

Having  cut  a  sufficient  quantity  of  to 
bacco,  Many  Arrows  asked  his  wife  to  call  at 
the  home  of  each  of  the  famous  hunters 
whom  he  intended  to  honor,  for  it  is  the 
loved  wife  who  has  this  privilege.  Flying 
Bee  was  the  first  invited;  then  Black  Hawk, 
Antler,  and  Charging  Bear.  The  lodge  of 
Many  Arrows  was  soon  the  liveliest  quarter 
of  the  Big  Cat  village  —  for  this  particular 
band  of  Sioux  was  known  as  the  Big  Cat 
band.  All  came  to  the  host's  great  buffalo- 
skin  teepee,  from  the  top  of  which  was  flying 
a  horse's  tail  trimmed  with  an  eagle  feather, 
to  denote  the  home  of  a  man  of  distinction. 

"  Ho,  kola,"  greeted  the  host  from  his  seat 
of  dignified  welcome.  "Ho,"  replied  each 
guest  as  he  gracefully  opened  the  door-flap. 
Inside  of  the  spacious  teepee  were  spread  for 
seats  the  choicest  robes  of  bear,  elk,  and 
bison.  Mrs.  Tawahinkpayota,  who  wished 
to  do  honor  to  her  husband's  guests,  had 
dressed  for  the  occasion.  Her  jet-black  hair 

J4  201 


Red    Hunters   a-nd    the    Anima.1    People 


was  smoothly  combed  and  arranged  in  two 
long  plaits  over  her  shoulders.  Her  face 
was  becomingly  painted,  and  her  superb  gar 
ment  of  richly  embroidered  4ijfisfcin  com 
pleted  a  picture  of  prosperous  matronhood. 

While  her  husband  offered  the  guests  a 
short  round  of  whiffs  from  the  pipe  ^  peace, 
she  went  quietly  about  her  preparations  for 
the  repast,  and  presently  served  each  in  turn 
with  ^  choicest  delicacies  their  lodge  afford 
ed.  When  all  with  due  deliberation  had 
ended  their  meal,  the  host  made  his  expected 
speech—  for  it  was  not  without  intention  that 
he  had  btoqght  these  noted  men  together. 

"Friends,"  said  he,  "a  thought  has  come 
to  me  strongly.  I  win  open  my  mind  to  you. 
We  should  go  to  Upanokootay  to  shoot  elk, 
deer,  and  antelope.  We  have  been  long  upon 
the  prairie,  killing  only  buffalo.  We  need 
fine  Ifflp-JM^Mi  for  garments  of  ceremony. 
We  want  also  the  skins  of  bears  for  robes 
suitable  to  a  warrior's  home,  such  as  the 
home  of  each  one  of  you.  And  then,  you 
know,  we  must  please  oar  women,  who  great 
ly  desire  the  elk's  teeth  for  ornament,  and  for 
fine  needle-work  the  quills  of  the  porcupine." 

"Ho,  hoF  they  repHed,  in  chorus. 
202 


The    Challenge 

"  It  is  always  wett/'  resumed  Many  Arrow*, 
"for  great  hunters  to  go  out  in  company. 
For  this  reason  I  have  catted  you  three  to 
gether.  Is  it  not  true  that  Upanokootay, 
Elk  Point,  is  the  place  we  should  seek?" 

Again  they  all  assented.  So  it  came  about 
that  the  five  hunters  and  their  wives,  who 
must  cure  and  dress  the  skins  of  the  game, 
departed  from  the  large  camp  upon  the  Big 
Sioux  River  and  journeyed  amlliwanl  tow 
ard  the  favored  hunting-ground. 

It  was  near  the  close  of  the  moon  of 
black  cherries,  when  elk  and  antelope  roam 
in  great  herds,  and  the  bears  are  happiest, 
because  it  is  their  feasting-time.  There  was 
to  be  a  friendly  contest  in  the  hunting. 
All  agreed  to  use  no  weapon  save  the  bow 
and  arrows,  although  Hie  " mysterious  iron" 
and  gunpowder  had  already  been  intro 
duced.  Furthermore,  they  agreed  that  no 
pony  should  be  used  in  running  down  the 
game.  Thus  the  rules  which  should  govern 
the  character  of  the  hunt  were  all  deter 
mined  upon  in  advance,  and  the  natural 
rivalry  between  the  iHiHtffE  was  to  be  dis 
played  in  a  fair  and  open  trial  of  skill  and 
endurance.  It  was  well  known  that  these 
203 


Red  Hunters   a.i\d  the  Anima.1  People 

five  were  all  tried  and  mighty  men  beyond 
most  of  their  fellows.  This  does  not  mean 
that  they  were  large  men ;  on  the  contrary, 
none  was  much  above  the  medium  height, 
but  they  were  exceptionally  symmetrical 
and  deep-chested. 

On  the  second  morning,  the  men  scattered 
as  usual,  after  selecting  a  camping-ground 
at  which  all  would  meet  later  in  the  day. 
Each  hunter  was  attired  in  his  lightest  buck 
skin  leggings  and  a  good  running  pair  of 
moccasins,  while  only  a  quiver  with  the  ar 
rows  and  bows  swung  over  his  stalwart  shoul 
ders.  All  set  out  apparently  in  different 
directions,  but  they  nevertheless  kept  a  close 
watch  upon  one  another,  for  the  chief  occa 
sion  of  an  Indian's  mirth  is  his  friend's  mis 
takes  or  mishaps  in  the  chase. 

Flying  Bee  hastened  along  the  upper 
ridges  overlooking  the  plain.  What!  a  great 
herd  of  elk  grazing  not  far  away!  It  was 
needful  to  get  as  close  to  them  as  possible  in 
order  to  make  a  successful  chase.  He  threw 
off  all  superfluous  garments,  tossed  his 
quiver  to  one  side,  and  took  three  arrows 
with  the  bow  in  his  hand.  He  then  crept 
up  a  ravine  until  he  came  within  a  short  dis- 
204 


The   Challenge 

tance  of  the  herd.  As  he  cautiously  raised 
his  head  for  a  survey,  he  saw  a  jack-rabbit's 
long  ears  a  little  way  off,  while  a  yearling  an 
telope  showed  itself  above  the  long  grass  to 
the  left. 

"  Ugh,  you  may  fool  the  elk,  but  you  can't 
fool  me !' '  he  remarked  as  he  smiled  to  him 
self. 

Again,  on  the  farther  side,  a  fawn's  head 
was  turned  in  the  direction  of  the  herd. 

"Ho,  ho!"  chuckled  Flying  Bee.  "Where 
is  the  other?" 

Just  then,  at  his  right,  a  little  buffalo  calf's 
head  was  pushed  cautiously  above  a  bunch 
of  grass. 

"Ugh,  you  are  all  here,  are  you?  Then  I 
will  show  you  how  to  chase  the  elk." 

He  pulled  a  large  bunch-weed  and  held  it 
in  front  of  him  so  that  the  elk  could  not 
see  him  for  a  moment.  Then  he  ran  forward 
rapidly  under  cover  of  the  weed. 

He  had  scarcely  done  this  when  Charging 
Bear  emerged  from  the  direction  of  the  fawn 
display.  Tawahinkpeota  came  forth  from 
the  antelope  head,  while  Black  Hawk  and 
Antler  rose  up  where  the  jack-rabbit  and 
calf  had  lain.  Bee  disappeared  in  the  midst 
205 


Red   Hunters   and  the    Animal   People 

of  the  fleeing  herd,  as  he  was  a  runner  of 
exceptional  swiftness.  The  great  herd  de 
parted  in  a  thunder  of  hoofs,  and  the  five 
friends  paused  to  smoke  together  and  ex 
change  jokes  before  going  to  examine  their 
game.  Black  Hawk,  whose  quarry  had  gone 
with  the  rest,  carrying  his  arrows,  was  great 
ly  disappointed,  and  he  immediately  became 
a  butt  for  the  wit  and  ridicule  of  the  others. 

' '  How  is  this,  friend  ?  Have  the  elk  such 
a  fear  of  the  harmless  jack-rabbit  ?  It  seems 
that  they  did  not  give  you  a  chance  to  make 
your  swift  arrows  count." 

"Ha,  ha,  ha!"  laughed  Tawahinkpayota. 
"  The  elk  people  never  knew  before  that  a 
rabbit  would  venture  to  give  them  chase." 

' 'Ah,  but  he  has  often  been  seen  to  run 
after  elk,  deer,  and  even  buffalo  to  save  his 
own  scalp  from  the  wolves  when  he  is  pur 
sued!"  Thus  Charging  Bear  came  to  the 
rescue  of  his  friend. 

And  so  they  joked  while  Antler  filled  the 
pipe. 

"We  must  take  only  one  or  two  short 

whiffs,"  he  reminded  them,  as  he  crowded 

down  the  mixture  of  tobacco  and  willow  bark 

into  the  red  bowl.   It  was  the  time  of  hunting 

206 


The  Challenge 

and  running,  when  men  do  not  smoke  much, 
and  the  young  men  not  at  all. 

Having  finished  their  smoke,  they  arose 
and  followed  the  trail  of  the  elk.  The  animal 
shot  by  Flying  Bee  lay  dead  not  far  away, 
with  an  arrow  sticking  out  of  the  opposite 
side  of  its  body,  for  he  was  a  powerful  man. 
Soon  they  came  to  two  does  lying  dead,  but 
there  were  no  arrows,  and  the  wounds  were 
not  arrow  wounds. 

"Ho,  kola,  hun-hun-hay!  Surely  you 
could  not  use  your  knife  while  running  bow 
in  hand?"  remarked  Black  Hawk. 

"  We  shall  make  it  a  rule  hereafter  that  no 
one  shall  use  any  strange  or  unusual  weapon," 
added  Many  Arrows,  jestingly. 

"You  see  now  how  a  Bee  can  sting!" 
chimed  in  Charging  Bear,  in  much  mirth 
and  admiration  for  the  feat  of  his  friend. 

This,  or  something  not  unlike  it,  was  now 
their  daily  experience,  while  their  wives 
busily  dressed  the  skins  of  their  game  and 
cured  such  of  the  meat  as  they  cared  to  save. 
Each  man  kept  a  mental  record  of  his  shots 
for  future  reference,  and  all  bore  with  un 
failing  good-humor  the  kindly  ridicule  of 
their  fellows.  They  often  hunted  singly, 
207 


Red   Hunters    and  the   Animal  People 

yet  the  tendency  was  to  be  on  the  look- 
put  for  one  another  as  well  as  for  them 
selves,  knowing  that  they  were  always  in 
more  or  less  peril  from  ferocious  animals,  as 
well  as  from  the  enemies  of  their  people. 
They  would  also  send  out  one  of  their  num 
ber  from  time  to  time  to  scout  the  ground 
over  which  they  expected  to  hunt  on  the 
following  day. 

"Ho,  koowah  yay  yo,  kola!"  was  the  cry 
of  Black  Hawk,  one  evening,  inviting  his 
companion  hunters  to  feast  at  his  lodge. 
He  had  been  appointed  to  scout  the  field 
south  of  their  camp,  and,  having  explored  the 
country  thoroughly,  was  ready  to  make  his 
report. 

"The  land  south  of  us,  along  the  river," 
said  he,  "is  well  peopled  with  elk,  deer,  and 
beaver,  and  the  prairie  adjoining  is  full  of 
buffalo.  As  far  as  the  eye  can  see,  their 
herds  are  countless.  But,  friends,"  he  added, 
"there  are  also  bears  in  this  region.  I  have 
seen  them,  and  I  saw  many  of  their  fresh 
tracks." 

Black  Hawk  was  a  clever  scout,  and  could 
imitate  both  the  actions  and  call  of  any  ani 
mal  so  as  almost  to  deceive  his  fellow-hunt- 
208 


The   Challenge 

ers.  He  had  covered  considerable  ground 
that  afternoon. 

' 'There  is,  however,  no  recent  sign  of  any 
of  our  enemies,  and  the  game  is  better  than 
in  any  year  that  I  have  come  here,"  he  said 
again. 

"Ho,  ho,  ho!"  was  the  chorus  of  thanks 
from  the  others. 

"Flying  Bee,  you  have  hunted  in  this  re 
gion  longer  than  the  rest  of  us.  Tell  us  of 
the  wisdom  of  other  years,"  suggested  one. 

"Ho,  kola,  hechetu!"  again  came  the  ap 
proving  chorus. 

The  feast  was  eaten,  the  pipe  was  laid 
aside,  and  Flying  Bee  began  thus: 

' '  It  was  in  the  same  year  that  the  great 
battle  was  fought  between  the  Omahas  and 
the  Yankton  Sioux,  under  this  high  ridge. 
We  were  hunting  upon  the  other  side,  and  I 
saw  then  as  many  elk  and  deer  as  there  are 
now.  I  was  a  young  man  and  had  just  be 
gun  to  know  the  ways  of  the  elk  and  his 
weaknesses. 

"You  must  never  allow  him  to  get  your 

scent,  but  you  can  let  him  see  you,  provided 

he  does  not  understand.     If  he  thinks  you 

are  some  other  animal,  he  will  not  trouble 

209 


R.ed  Hunters   and  the   AnimaJ  People 

to  move  away,  but  if  you  make  him  curious 
he  will  come  to  you.  If  you  put  on  a  brown 
suit  and  appear  and  disappear  in  the  edge 
of  the  woods  at  evening  or  early  morning, 
the  doe  will  approach  you  curiously.  In  the 
spring  moons  you  can  deceive  her  with  the 
doe-caller,  and  a  little  later  than  this  you 
can  deceive  her  with  the  call  of  the  buck  elk. 

' '  If  you  have  a  *  mysterious  iron '  you  can 
shoot  down  any  number  of  them.  A  woman 
or  a  white  man  could  do  as  much.  Also,  if 
you  have  a  swift  pony  you  can  run  down 
almost  any  game.  This  is  no  true  test  of 
skill.  Do  as  we  are  doing  now — hunt  on  foot 
with  only  the  bow  and  arrow  or  the  knife  and 
stone  for  weapons,  for  these  were  the  weapons 
of  our  people  for  untold  years. 

"  There  are  no  finer  animals  than  the  elk 
folk.  I  have  studied  their  ways,  because, 
as  you  know,  we  have  followed  their  cus 
toms  in  courtship  and  warfare  as  much  as 
those  of  any  nation.  Doubtless  all  our  man 
ners  and  customs  were  first  copied  from  the 
ways  of  the  best  animal  people,"  added  the 
speaker. 

"Ho,  kola,  hechetu!"  was  the  unanimous 
endorsement  of  his  friends. 
210 


The   Challenge 

"From  now  on  the  great  elk  chieftain 
gathers  his  herd.  The  smaller  herds  are 
kept  by  smaller  chiefs,  and  there  are  many 
duels.  I  say  again,  no  duel  is  brave  and 
honest  as  that  of  the  elk.  When  the  chal 
lenge  comes,  it  means  a  death-notice  and 
must  be  accepted.  The  elk  is  no  coward;  he 
never  refuses,  although  he  knows  that  one 
at  least  must  die  in  the  fight. 

"The  elk  woman,  too,  is  the  most  truly 
coquettish  of  all  animals.  She  is  pretty  and 
graceful,  but  she  is  ready  to  elope  with  the 
first  suitor.  Therefore,  we  call  the  young 
man  who  is  especially  successful  in  court 
ship  the  elk  young  man.  The  girlish  and 
coquettish  young  woman  we  call  the  elk 
maiden. 

"The  bear  and  the  buffalo  are  people  of 
much  mouth.  They  make  a  great  deal  of 
noise  when  they  fight.  The  elk  is  always 
silent  and  does  nothing  that  is  unbecoming. 
Those  others  are  something  like  the  white 
men,  who  curse  and  broil  much  among  one 
another,"  Bee  concluded,  with  an  air  of 
triumph. 

"I  have  several  times  witnessed  a  com 
bat  between  the  elk  and  the  grizzly.  I  have 
211 


R_ed  Hunters  a.nd  the   Animal   People 

also  seen  the  battle  between  the  buffalo  bull 
and  the  elk,  and  victory  is  usually  with  the 
latter,  although  I  have  known  him  to  be 
mortally  wounded." 

"And  I  have  witnessed  many  times  the 
duels  between  great  elk  chiefs,"  joined  in 
Many  Arrows. 

' '  These  people  go  in  large  bands  from  this 
time  until  the  winter,  when  they  scatter  in 
smaller  bands.  The  elk  leads  a  bachelor's 
life  from  January  until  midsummer,  and 
about  July  he  begins  to  look  for  company." 
This  was  Antler's  observation. 

"There  are  two  large  herds  near  Smoky 
Hill,  upon  the  river  meadows.  It  will  be 
easy  to  catch  some  of  the  does  in  the  evening, 
when  they  return  to  their  fawns.  They  hide 
the  fawns  well. 

"Some  leave  them  in  the  woods,  others 
take  them  into  the  deep  ravines.  My  wife 
is  anxious  that  I  should  bring  her  a  fawn's 
skin  for  a  fancy  bag,"  suggested  Black 
Hawk. 

"It  will  take  some  good  running  to  catch 
a  fawn  at  this  time  of  the  year.  They  are 
quite  large  now,  and  the  earliest  fawns  are 
already  out  with  the  herds,"  remarked  Many 

212 


The  Challenge 

Arrows.  "  The  moon  of  strawberries  is  really 
the  best  time  to  catch  the  doe  and  fawn  with 
a  birchen  whistle.  However,  there  are  some 
still  hidden,  and  as  long  as  the  doe  suckles 
her  fawn  she  will  always  come  back  to  it  at 
evening." 

Having  received  such  encouraging  reports 
from  their  advance  scout,  the  wild  hunters 
immediately  removed  their  camp  to  the 
vicinity  of  the  great  herd.  It  was  a  glorious 
September  morning,  and  the  men  all  left  for 
the  field  at  daybreak  to  steal  upon  the  game. 
They  hurried  along  in  single  file  until  near 
enough,  then  they  broke  ranks,  separated, 
and  crept  around  an  immense  herd  of  elk. 
The  river  here  made  a  quick  turn,  forming  a 
complete  semicircle.  A  lovely  plain  was 
bounded  by  the  stream,  and  at  each  end  of 
the  curve  the  river  and  woods  met  the  side 
of  the  upper  plateau.  The  whole  scene  was 
commanded  by  the  highest  point  of  the 
ridge,  called  by  the  Indians  Smoky  Hill. 

The  elk  people  had  now  reached  the  cli 
max  of  their  summer  gayety  and  love-mak 
ing.  Each  herd  was  ruled  by  a  polygamous 
monarch  of  the  plains — a  great  chieftain  elk ! 
Not  a  doe  dared  to  leave  the  outskirts  of  the 
213 


Red  Hunters  a.nd  the  AnimaJ  People 

herd,  nor  could  the  younger  bucks  venture  to 
face  their  mighty  rival  of  the  many-branched 
horns  and  the  experience  of  half  a  score  of 
seasons. 

Of  this  particular  herd  the  ruler  was  truly 
a  noble  monarch.  He  had  all  the  majesty 
that  we  might  expect  of  one  who  had  become 
the  master  of  a  thousand  does. 

The  elk  women  were  in  their  best  attire 
and  their  happiest  spirits.  The  fawns  were 
now  big  enough  to  graze  and  no  longer  de 
pendent  upon  their  mothers'  milk,  therefore 
the  mothers  had  given  themselves  over 
wholly  to  social  conquests.  Every  doe  was 
on  the  alert,  and  used  her  keen  sight,  ear, 
and  scent  to  the  utmost  to  discover  the  hand 
somest  elk  young  man,  who,  though  not  per 
mitted  to  show  himself  within  the  kingdom 
of  the  monarch,  might  warily  approach  its 
boundaries. 

Hehaka,  the  monarch,  was  dressed  in  his 
finest  coat  and  had  but  lately  rubbed  the 
velvet  from  his  huge  and  branchy  antlers. 
His  blood  was  richest  and  bluest  of  the  elk 
folk.  He  stood  upon  the  outer  edge  and 
continually  circled  the  entire  herd — a  faith 
ful  guardian  and  watchful  of  his  rights. 
214 


The  Challenge 

Around  this  herd  the  wild  hunters  con 
verged  and,  each  taking  up  his  assigned 
position,  were  ready  to  begin  the  attack. 
But  they  delayed  long,  because  of  their  great 
admiration  for  the  elk  chieftain.  His  bear 
ing  was  magnificent.  The  unseen  spectators 
noted  his  every  movement,  and  observed 
with  interest  the  behavior  of  the  elk  women. 

Now  and  then  a  doe  would  start  for  the 
edge  of  the  woods,  and  the  ruler  would  have 
to  run  after  her  to  remind  her  of  his  claim. 
Whenever  this  happened,  a  close  scrutiny 
would  reveal  that  a  young  buck  elk  had 
shown  his  broadside  there  for  a  moment, 
desiring  to  entice  one  of  the  monarch's  elk 
women  away.  These  young  bucks  do  not 
offer  a  challenge;  they  dare  not  fight,  for 
that  would  mean  certain  death ;  so  that  they 
show  the  better  part  of  valor  in  avoiding  the 
eye  of  the  jealous  monarch.  But  they  exert 
the  greatest  attraction  over  the  susceptible 
elk  women.  All  they  need  do  is  to  show 
themselves,  and  the  does  will  run  towards 
them.  So  the  Indians  say  of  certain  young 
men,  "He  has  a  good  elk  medicine,  for  he  is 
always  fortunate  in  courtship." 

About  the  middle  or  end  of  August  these 
215 


R.ed  Hunters   and   the  AnimaJ   People 

young  bucks  begin  to  call.  They  travel 
singly  over  hill  and  plain,  calling  for  their 
mates  until  their  voices  grow  hoarse  and  fail 
utterly.  All  this  finally  ends  in  the  breaking- 
up  of  the  monarch's  harem. 

The  call  of  the  elk  when  new  is  a  high- 
pitched  whistle,  pleasant  to  hear  as  well  as 
fascinating  and  full  of  pathos.  The  love- 
call  of  the  Indian  youth  is  modelled  upon  the 
whistle  of  the  elk. 

Now,  the  Yanktons,  unknown  to  our  party, 
had  routed  a  large  herd  of  elk  on  the  day 
before  on  the  plains  south  of  the  high  ridge, 
but  the  great  chieftain  of  the  herd  had  es 
caped  into  the  hills. 

His  herd  destroyed,  the  chief  was  all  alone. 
He  could  not  forget  the  disaster  that  had  be 
fallen  his  people.  He  came  out  upon  the 
highest  point  of  the  ridge  and  surveyed  the 
plains  below — the  succession  of  beautiful  hills 
and  valleys  where  he  had  roamed  as  lord. 
Now  he  saw  nothing  there  except  that  im 
mediately  below  him,  upon  a  grassy  plateau, 
were  one  or  two  circular  rows  of  the  white, 
egg-shaped  homes  of  those  dreadful  wild  men 
who  had  destroyed  or  scattered  all  his  elk 
women.  He  snorted  and  sniffed  the  air  and 
216 


The  Challenge 

tossed  his  immense  horns,  maddened  by  this 
humiliation. 

"It  is  now  calling-time.  I  have  acquired 
the  largest  number  of  branches  on  my  horns. 
It  is  my  right  to  meet  any  king  among  my 
people  who  thinks  himself  better  able  than  I 
to  gather  and  keep  a  harem."  Though 
weary  and  disappointed,  he  now  grew  bold 
and  determined.  "It  is  now  calling- time/' 
he  seemed  to  say  to  himself.  "To-morrow 
at  sunrise  my  voice  shall  open  the  call  upon 
the  old  elk  hill!  I  know  that  there  must  be 
many  elk  women  not  far  away.  If  any  buck 
should  desire  to  meet  me  in  battle,  I  am 
ready!" 

The  lonely  elk  passed  a  wretched  night. 
He  could  not  forget  what  had  happened  on 
the  day  before.  At  dawn  hunger  seized 
him,  and  he  ate  of  the  fine  dew-moistened 
grass  until  he  was  satisfied.  Then  he  fol 
lowed  the  oak  ridges  along  the  side  of  Smoky 
Hill,  travelling  faster  as  the  day  began  to 
break.  He  thought  he  saw  here  and  there  a 
herd  of  elk  women  loom  large  through  the 
misty  air,  but  as  the  shadows  vanished  he 
discovered  his  mistake.  At  last  he  stood 
upon  the  summit,  facing  the  sunrise, 
is  217 


R.ed    Hunters   amd   the   Animal   People 

The  plains  below  were  speckled  far  and 
wide  with  herds  of  antelope  and  of  bison. 
The  Big  Sioux  River  lazily  wound  its  way 
through  the  beautiful  elk  land.  He  saw 
five  teepees  upon  a  rich  plain  almost  sur 
rounded  by  a  bend  of  the  river,  and  not  far 
away  there  grazed  a  great  band  of  elk  women, 
herded  apparently  by  a  noble  buck. 

The  heart  of  the  lonely  one  leaped  with 
gladness,  and  then  stung  him  with  grief  and 
shame.  He  had  not  heard  one  elk-call  that 
year  as  yet.  It  was  time.  Something  told 
him  so.  It  would  not  break  the  elk's  cus 
tom  if  he  should  call. 

His  blood  arose.  His  eyes  sparkled  and 
nostrils  dilated.  He  tossed  his  branchy, 
mighty  antlers  and  shook  them  in  the  air, 
he  hardly  knew  why,  except  that  it  was  his 
way  of  saying,  "  I  dare  any  one  to  face  me!" 

He  trotted  upon  the  very  top  of  Smoky 
Hill.  The  air  was  fresh  and  full  of  life.  He 
forgot  at  that  moment  everything  that  had 
passed  since  his  mother  left  him,  and  his 
mind  was  wholly  upon  the  elk  people  who 
were  gathered  there  below  him  in  a  glorious 
band.  He  felt  that  he  must  now  call,  and 
that  his  voice  should  sound  the  beginning  of 
218 


The  Challenge 

the  elk-calling  of  that  season  upon  the  Big 
Sioux. 

Flying  Bee  had  notified  his  fellow-hunters 
by  means  of  a  small  mirror  of  the  presence 
of  a  grizzly  in  their  midst,  and  each  one  was 
on  the  alert.  Soon  all  had  located  him,  and 
moved  to  a  point  of  safety.  They  preferred 
to  see  him  attack  the  herd  rather  than  one  of 
themselves,  and  they  were  certain  that  the 
monarch  of  the  Big  Sioux  would  give  him  a 
pitched  battle.  He  was  the  protector  of 
every  doe  in  his  band,  and  he  had  doubtless 
assured  them  of  that  when  he  took  them  into 
the  herd. 

"Whoo -o-o-o  !"  a  long,  clear  whistle 
dropped  apparently  out  of  the  blue  sky.  A 
wonderful  wave  of  excitement  passed  through 
the  great  herd.  Every  tobacco-leaf-shaped 
ear  was  quickly  cast  toward  Smoky  Hill. 
The  monarch  at  once  accepted  the  challenge. 
He  stepped  in  front  of  his  elk  women  and 
lifted  his  immense  head  high  up  to  sniff  the 
morning  air.  Soon  he  began  to  paw  and 
throw  up  the  earth  with  his  fore  and  hind 
hoofs  alternately. 

Just  then  the  second  call  came — a  piercing 
and  wonderful  love-call!  The  whole  band 
219 


Red  Hunters    and  the  Animal   People 

of  elk  women  started  in  the  direction  of  the 
challenger.  Every  one  of  them  gave  the 
doe's  response,  and  the  air  was  filled  with 
their  stamping  and  calling. 

The  monarch  started  to  intercept  them  in 
great  rage  and  madness.  The  hunters  all 
ran  for  the  nearest  tall  trees  from  which  they 
might  witness  the  pending  duel,  for  they 
knew  well  that  when  two  of  these  rulers  of 
the  wilderness  meet  at  this  season  it  can  be 
for  nothing  less  than  a  battle  to  death.  As 
Bee  settled  himself  among  the  boughs  of  a 
large  ash  that  stood  well  up  on  the  brow  of 
the  river-bank,  he  easily  commanded  the 
scene. 

He  saw  the  challenger  standing  upon  the 
highest  point  of  Smoky  Hill.  In  a  moment 
he  descended  the  slope  and  ran  swiftly  to  the 
level  of  the  plain.  Here  he  paused  to  give 
the  third  challenge  and  the  love-call — the 
call  that  the  Indian  youth  adopted  and  made 
their  own. 

Again  the  elk  women  were  excited  and 
stamped  their  hoofs.  The  monarch  now  let 
them  alone,  and  started  on  a  run  to  meet  the 
challenger.  Bee  could  not  restrain  himself; 
he  had  to  give  a  sympathetic  whoop  or  two, 
220 


The  Challenge 

in  which  his  fellows  willingly  joined.  The 
elk  paid  no  attention,  but  when  old  grizzly 
found  that  he  was  among  many  warriors,  he 
retreated  to  an  adjoining  creek  to  hide. 

The  challenger  saw  his  adversary  coming, 
and  he  hurried  forward  without  a  pause.  The 
elk  women  were  thrown  into  the  greatest 
confusion,  and  even  the  five  warrior-hunters 
became  much  excited,  for  they  always  ad 
mired  a  brave  act,  whether  the  performer 
were  a  man  like  themselves  or  one  of  the 
four-footed  folk. 

When  the  monarch  saw  that  the  challenger 
was  in  earnest,  he  took  up  his  position  in 
front  of  his  herd.  On  came  the  other,  never 
pausing  after  the  third  call.  When  he  was 
within  a  hundred  paces,  the  monarch  again 
advanced,  and  the  two  came  together  with  a 
great  clash  of  mighty  antlers.  Both  trem 
bled  violently  for  an  instant;  then  each  be 
came  tense  in  every  muscle  of  his  body  as 
they  went  into  action. 

Now  one  was  pushed  bodily  along  for 
some  distance,  and  now  the  other  was  pressed 
back.  At  one  time  both  kneeled  down  and 
held  each  other  fast  with  locked  horns. 
Again  they  were  up  and  tugging  with  all 

221 


Red   Hunters    and    the   Animal   People 

their  strength.  The  elk  women  were  ex 
citedly  calling  and  stamping  in  a  circle 
around  their  lovers  and  champions,  who 
paid  no  heed  to  them. 

At  last  the  monarch  made  a  rush  with  all 
the  strength  that  was  left  him.  He  turned 
the  body  of  the  challenger  half-way  round. 
Quick  as  a  flash  he  pulled  off  and  jabbed 
three  prongs  of  his  horns  deep  into  the 
other's  side.  But,  alas!  at  that  moment  he 
received  an  equal  wound  in  his  own  body. 
Exhausted  by  loss  of  blood,  they  soon  aban 
doned  the  contest.  Each  walked  a  few  steps 
in  an  opposite  direction,  and  lay  down,  never 
to  rise  again! 

All  of  the  hunters  now  descended  and  hur 
ried  to  the  spot,  while  the  elk  women  fled  in 
a  great  thunder  of  hoofs.  They  wished  to 
give  to  the  two  combatants  a  warrior's  hom 
age. 

The  challenger  was  already  dead.  The 
monarch  was  still  living,  but  his  life  was 
ebbing  so  fast  that  he  did  not  even  notice 
their  approach. 

Flying  Bee  held  his  filled  pipe  toward  the 
fallen  king.  "  Let  thy  spirit  partake  of  this 
smoke,  Hehaka!"  he  exclaimed.  "May  I 

222 


The  Challenge 

have  thy  courage  and  strength  when  I  meet 
my  enemy  in  battle!" 

It  is  the  belief  of  the  Indian  that  many  a 
brave  warrior  has  the  spirit  of  a  noble  animal 
working  in  him. 

The  five  hunters  were  so  greatly  touched 
by  this  event  that  they  returned  to  camp 
empty-handed  out  of  respect  for  the  brave 
dead.  They  left  handfuls  of  cut  tobacco 
beside  each  of  the  elk,  and  Black  Hawk  took 
off  one  of  the  two  eagle  feathers  that  he 
always  wore  and  tied  it  to  the  monarch's 
head. 


Wild  Animals  from  the  Indian 
Stand-point 


"TTULA,  tula,  kola,  the   game   is   plenti- 

1  ful — once  more  the  flats  of  the  Chey 
enne  are  covered  with  buffalo — winter  is  still 
at  a  distance  and  all  is  well!" 

Thus  laughingly  exclaimed  old  Hohay  as 
he  approached  the  teepee  of  Sheyaka,  a  re 
nowned  hunter  of  the  Sioux. 

"  Ugh,  you  are  all  here,  even  Kangee  and 
Katola.  What  is  in  your  minds?"  he  con 
tinued,  as  he  entered  and  took  his  seat. 

"Ho,  brother-in-law,  it  is  good  of  you  to 
join  us.  We  are  merely  enjoying  our  smoke," 
replied  the  genial  host.  "Ah,  you  are  still 
the  coyote  that  you  were  in  your  younger 
days!  Smoke  never  entered  your  nostrils 
without  drawing  you  as  by  a  rope.  But  now 
that  you  are  here  you  must  decide  between 
us.  Kangee  maintains  that  the  doe  never 
224 


Wild  Animals   from  the  Indian   Stevrvd-poinf 

fights.  I  have  said  that  she  has  been  known 
to  defend  herself  even  more  fiercely  than  her 
brother,"  urged  Sheyaka. 

"It  is  agreed  by  all  our  hunters  that  you 
have  studied  the  ways  of  the  animals  more 
closely  than  any  of  us,"  chimed  in  Kangee. 
"Of  course,  we  have  all  heard  the  traditions 
of  the  old  hunters  as  they  have  been  handed 
down  from  our  fathers,  but  the  things  that 
we  ourselves  have  seen  and  known  are 
straight  and  strong  in  our  minds  as  a  newly 
made  arrow,"  he  added. 

Hohay  had  been  pulling  silently  at  his 
long-stemmed  pipe,  but  in  a  minute  he  passed 
the  pipe  on  to  Kangee  and  tightened  the 
robe  about  his  knees  to  get  himself  into  a 
story-teller's  attitude,  for  he  had  no  idea  of 
dismissing  this  favorite  subject  in  a  few 
words. 

"We  must  remember,"  he  began,  slowly, 
"that  the  four-footed  people  do  not  speak 
after  our  fashion.  But  what  of  that  ?  Do  we 
not  talk  with  our  eyes,  lips,  fingers?  Love 
is  made  and  murder  done  by  the  wink  of  an 
eye  or  by  a  single  motion  of  the  hand.  Even 
we  ourselves  do  not  depend  altogether  upon 
speech  for  our  communication  with  one  an- 
225 


Red   Hunters  a.nd  the  Animal  People 

other.  Who  can  say  that  they  have  not  a 
language?" 

"Ho,  ho,  henaka,"  interrupted  Kangee. 
"I  will  help  you  a  little  here,  good  Hohay! 
It  is  well  known  that  the  alarm-call  of  the 
loon,  the  crane,  and  the  wild  goose  is  under 
stood  by  all  of  the  winged  people  that  swim 
the  lakes.  This  is  not  all.  Many  of  the 
four-footed  people  of  the  woods  know  it  as 
well.  It  often  happens  when  I  hunt  water 
fowl  that  one  gives  the  alarm  and  immedi 
ately  all  the  ducks  will  swim  out,  away  from 
the  shore.  Those  that  cannot  swim  crouch 
down  to  conceal  themselves,  and  even  small 
animals  stealthily  and  swiftly  dodge  back 
into  the  woods.  Yet  the  same  birds'  love 
and  play  calls  were  not  heeded  nor  did  they 
disturb  the  peace,  although  they  were  at  times 
very  noisy  and  talkative." 

""Ho,  ho,"  they  all  said. 

"Tadota  and  I,"  continued  Kangee,  "once 
saw  a  doe  call  to  her  fawn  to  lie  down  and 
hide.  It  happened  in  this  way.  We  were 
hunting  up  a  ravine  and  came  upon  the  doe 
and  fawn  about  a  hundred  paces  apart. 
They  were  both  standing  to  graze,  as  it  was 
early  in  the  evening.  As  soon  as  the  doe 
226 


Wild    AnimaJs  from  the   Indian   St&nd-point 

saw  us  she  gave  her  warning  call,  which 
usually  causes  the  fawn  to  run  toward  her. 
But  in  this  case  the  little  creature  dropped 
instantly  into  the  tall  grass.  After  we  had 
shot  the  doe  we  came  up  to  her,  but  she  lay 
perfectly  still  and  refused  to  rise.  I  may  be 
wrong,  but  I  believe  the  doe  told  the  fawn  to 
drop. 

"  I  have  also  seen  a  doe  and  fawn  playing," 
he  went  on,  "when  plainly  the  mother  di 
rected  her  young  to  leap  a  stream  which  she 
herself  had  just  crossed.  The  fawn  was  tim 
id  and  would  not  jump.  Three  times  the 
doe  called,  pounding  the  ground  with  her 
fore-foot.  At  last  she  sprang  back  and  ca 
ressed  the  fawn  with  her  nose  and  stood  with 
her  a  little  while,  and  then  once  more  leaped 
the  stream.  The  young  fawn  came  to  the 
very  edge  of  the  bank  and  nervously  smelled 
and  examined  it.  Meanwhile  the  doe  called 
emphatically,  and  finally  the  little  one  jump 
ed.  So  I  think  there  is  good  ground  for  say 
ing  that  the  wild  animals  have  a  language  to 
which  we  have  not  the  key." 

"Kangee  is  right,"  spoke  up  Sheyaka. 

"Ugh,"  said  Katola,  who  had  not  spoken 
before.  "He  has  made  the  doe  and  fawn 
227 


R.ed    Hunters    a^nd   the   Animal    People 

real  people.  They  can  neither  speak  nor 
reason,"  added  the  doubter,  ''and  the  fawn 
hides  because  it  is  its  nature  to  hide,  not 
because  the  mother  has  instructed  it." 

"  Hun  -  hun  -  hay !"  exclaimed  Hohay,  who 
was  older  than  the  other  three.  "The  ani 
mals  do  teach  their  young,  and  the  proof  is 
that  the  young  often  fail  to  perform  the 
commonest  acts  of  their  parents  when  capt 
ured  very  early  and  kept  by  man.  It  is 
common  knowledge  among  us  that  the  buffa 
lo  calf  and  fawn  have  refused  to  swim  when 
tamed,  and  do  not  run  swiftly  and  well  as 
when  trained  by  the  mother,  and,  in  fact, 
have  no  disposition  to  run  when  let  loose 
with  the  prairie  before  them. 

"Again,  it  is  well  known  that  all  elk  are 
not  equally  good  runneis.  Some  of  them 
we  could  run  down  on  foot  and  that  shortly, 
while  others  try  the  strength  of  the  best 
running  horse,  all  in  the  same  season  of  the 
year  and  even  in  the  same  herd.  It  looks 
to  me  as  if  some  mothers  were  better  trainers 
than  others. 

"This  training  is  very  important,  because 
wild  life  is  a  constant  warfare,  and  their  lives 
often  depend  upon  their  speed  in  flight.  The 
228 


Wild   AnimaJs    from    the    Indian   Stand-point 

meat-eating  animals,  too,  must  be  in  good 
trim,  as  they  are  compelled  to  chase  their 
game  daily. 

''The  bear  is  one  of  the  hardest  trainers 
among  the  wild  mothers.  In  the  midsum 
mer  moon  she  gives  them  a  regular  trial-heat. 
It  is  an  unlimited  run,  only  measured  by  the 
endurance  of  the  mother.  The  poor  cubs 
drop  out  of  the  race  one  by  one,  whenever 
one  is  winded.  But  in  case  one  holds  out, 
he  remains  with  her  in  the  same  den  during 
the  following  winter.  That  is  the  prize  of 
the  victor." 

"Who  has  seen  or  killed  the  mother-bear 
in  the  winter  with  a  single  cub?"  asked 
Katola. 

"I  have  seen  it,"  replied  Hohay. 

"And  I  also,"  added  Sheyaka. 

"  But  I  still  do  not  believe  that  they  teach 
their  young,  like  the  Red  people,"  Katola  said. 
"  Some  run  better  than  others  because  they 
are  stronger,  not  because  of  their  better 
training." 

"Sheyaka  wants  to  hear  about  the  doe," 

resumed  Hohay,  "but  I  have  talked  much 

on  other  points  so  as  to  get  my  mind  fairly 

on  the  trail.     The  doe  is  the  most  sensitive 

229 


R.ed   Hunters   a.nd  the    Animevl   People 

animal  of  all  that  man  hunts.  She  is  the 
woman  in  every  way,  depending  upon  her 
quickness  and  cunning  in  hiding  and  the  turns 
she  takes  in  her  flight.  Perhaps  she  has  the 
best  nose  and  ears  of  all  animals,  but  she  has 
a  very  small  idea  of  the  hunter's  acuteness. 
She  knows  well  the  animal  hunters,  who  can 
smell  and  run,  but  of  man  she  knows  little, 
except  that,  though  clumsy,  he  is  dangerous. 

* '  This  delicate  little  squaw  can  fight  des 
perately  when  she  is  cornered  or  in  defence 
of  her  young.  She  has  even  been  known  to 
attempt  the  life  of  a  man  under  those  cir 
cumstances!  But,  Sheyaka,  it  is  time  to 
smoke,"  said  the  wild  philosopher  at  this 
point. 

"Ho,  koda,  chandee  ota,"  replied  Sheya-, 
ka,  as  he  graciously  produced  the  finely  cut 
tobacco  and  willow  bark.  "Katola,  you 
have  a  good  voice;  sing  us  a  hunting  song," 
added  the  good-natured  host. 

"Ho,  ho,"  the  company  spoke  in  approval 
of  the  suggestion. 

Katola  gave  them  a  song  without  words, 

the  musical,  high-pitched  syllables  forming 

a  simple  minor  cadence,  and  ending  with  a 

trill.     There  was  a  sort  of  chorus,  in  which 

230 


Wild   Animals  from   the   Indian   Stand-point 

all  the  men  joined,  while  Katola  kept  time 
with  two  sticks,  striking  one  against  the  other, 
and  Washaka,  the  little  son  of  the  host, 
danced  in  front  of  them  around  the  embers 
of  the  central  fire.  The  song  finished,  the 
pipe  was  silently  smoked,  passed  and  re- 
passed  around  the  circle. 

At  last  old  Hohay  laid  it  aside,  and  struck 
a  dignified  attitude,  ready  to  give  the  rest  of 
his  story. 

"  Katola  is  right  in  one  way,"  he  admitted. 
' '  He  cannot  be  blamed  for  having  never  seen 
what  has  been  witnessed  by  other  hunters. 
We  believe  what  we  ourselves  see,  and  we  are 
guided  by  our  own  reason  and  not  that  of 
another.  Stop  me  when  I  tell  you  a  thing 
hard  to  believe.  I  may  know  it  to  be  true, 
but  I  cannot  compel  you  to  believe  it." 

Kangee  could  not  contain  himself  any 
longer,  but  exclaimed : 

' '  I  have  even  known  the  coyote  to  make 
her  pups  carry  and  pile  the  bones  of  the 
buffalo  away  from  their  den!" 

"Ugh,    ugh!"    responded    the    old    man. 

"You  compel  me  to  join  Katola.     That  is 

hard  to  prove,  and  while  the  coyote  is  a  good 

trainer  and  orderly,  and  it  is  true  that  their 

231 


Red  Hunters  a.rvd  the   AnimaJ  People 

old  bones  are  sometimes  found  outside  the 
den,  I  have  never  before  heard  that  she 
makes  the  little  ones  pile  them.  I  am  not 
willing  to  put  that  into  my  bag  of  stories. 

"  Now,  as  to  the  ability  of  the  doe  to  fight. 
When  I  was  a  boy,  I  hunted  much  with  my 
father.  He  was  a  good  coyote — he  trained 
well  and  early.  One  spring  we  were  living 
in  the  woods  where  there  was  very  little 
game,  and  had  nothing  to  eat  but  musk-rats. 
My  father  took  me  with  him  on  a  long  deer- 
hunt.  We  found  a  deer-lick  beside  a  swollen 
pond.  The  ground  was  soft  around  the 
pond,  with  reeds  and  rushes. 

"  '  Here  we  shall  wait,'  said  my  father. 

"We  lay  concealed  in  the  edge  of  the 
woods  facing  a  deer -path  opposite.  In  a 
little  while  a  doe  appeared  on  the  trail. 
We  saw  that  she  was  in  full  flight,  for  her 
tongue  was  protruding  and  she  breathed 
hard.  She  immediately  waded  out  to  the 
middle  of  the  pond  and  stood  with  only  her 
head  out  of  water. 

' '  On  her  trail  a  large  gray  wolf  came  run 
ning,  followed  by  his  mate.  The  first,  with 
out  hesitation,  swam  out  to  the  doe.  She 
reared  upon  her  hind-feet  as  lie  approached, 
232 


Wild   ArvimaJs   from  the   Indian  Stand-point 

raising  both  of  her  front  hoofs  above  the 
water.  The  wolf  came  on  with  mouth  wide 
open  and  grinning  rows  of  teeth  to  catch  her 
tender  throat,  but  her  pointed  hoofs  struck 
his  head  again  and  again,  so  rapidly  that  we 
could  not  count  the  blows,  which  sounded 
like  a  war-club  striking  against  a  rock.  The 
wolf  disappeared  under  the  water. 

"Just  at  this  moment  the  other  wolf 
emerged  from  the  rushes  and  hastened  to  the 
assistance  of  her  mate.  The  doe  looked 
harmless,  and  she  swam  up  to  her.  But  the 
same  blows  were  given  to  her,  and  she,  too, 
disappeared.  In  a  little  while  two  furry 
things  floated  upon  the  surface  of  the  pond. 

"My  father  could  not  restrain  his  admira 
tion  for  her  brave  act ;  he  gave  a  war-whoop, 
and  I  joined  him  heartily." 

" Ho,  ho!  You  did  not  shoot  the  doe,  did 
you?"  they  asked. 

"If  we  did  that,  we  would  be  cowards," 
replied  the  story-teller.  "  We  let  her  go  free, 
although  we  were  in  need  of  food.  It  was 
then  I  knew  for  the  first  time  that  even  the 
doe  while  in  flight  watches  every  chance  to 
make  a  good  defence.  She  was  helpless  on 
dry  land,  so  she  deliberately  awaited  the 
'*  233 


Red   Hunters    a.nd  the  Animal   People 

wolves  in  the  deep  water,  where  she  could 
overcome  them.  Thereafter,  when  I  hunt  I 
keep  this  in  my  mind.  My  game  is  fully 
awake  to  the  situation,  and  I  must  use  my 
best  efforts  and  all  my  wits  to  get  him. 
They  think,  and  think  well,  too." 

"It  is  all  true,"  Kangee  assented,  enthusi 
astically.  "The  buffalo  is  the  wisest  of  all 
the  larger  four-footed  people,"  he  went  on, 
"in  training  the  young  calf." 

"  Ugh,  ugh!  they  do  not  train  their  young, 
I  tell  you!"  interrupted  Katola,  again. 

"Wait  until  Kangee  tells  what  he  knows 
and  then  tell  us  your  thought,"  interposed 
Hohay.  "  It  is  not  fair  to  doubt  the  word  of 
a  fellow-hunter." 

"I  want  to  tell  what  I  myself  saw,"  re 
sumed  Kangee.  "Near  the  Black  Hills,  in 
the  early  spring,  we  hunted  the  bison.  My 
brother  and  I  followed  two  cows  with  their 
small  calves.  They  disappeared  over  a  ridge 
into  a  deep  valley. 

"We  hastened  on  and  saw  only  one  cow 
running  on  the  other  side  without  her  calf. 
In  the  ravine  we  came  upon  the  other,  and 
saw  her  vigorously  push  the  calf  down  two 
or  three  times,  but  each  time  it  rose  again." 
234 


Wild    Animals   from   the   Indian    Sta^nd-point 

"Ha,  ha,  ha!  The  calf  refused  to  hide," 
they  all  laughed. 

"When  she  saw  us,  she  turned  and  ran  on 
with  her  calf.  Presently  she  entered  another 
valley,  and  emerged  on  the  other  side  with 
out  the  little  one.  At  the  first  ravine,  one 
cow  succeeded  in  cacheing  her  calf — the  other 
failed.  She  had  a  disobedient  child,  but 
finally  she  got  rid  of  it.  After  a  time  the 
calf  understands  its  mother's  wishes;  then 
she  always  succeeds  in  cacheing  her  young 
when  pursued." 

"  Tula,  tula,  kola!  That  is  common  knowl 
edge  of  all  hunters;  surely  Katola  cannot 
doubt  that,"  remarked  Hohay. 

"Not  that — I  only  said  that  they  do  not 
teach  them.  They  do  these  things  without 
thought  or  deliberate  planning,"  insisted 
Katola. 

' '  But  you  must  know  that  even  a  baby  who 
has  no  mother  after  a  while  forgets  to  take 
the  breast  when  one  is  offered  to  him.  It  is 
constant  bringing  to  the  young  creature  and 
continual  practice — that  is  teaching,"  Hohay 
declared,  and  the  other  two  nodded  approval. 

"  Neither  do  I  believe  in  a  language  of  ani 
mals,"  Katola  remarked. 
235 


Red   Hunters   <\nd  the   Animal   People 

"  It  may  be  there  is  none;  but,  even  so,  do 
we  not  convey  the  strongest  meaning  with 
out  a  sound  or  a  word  ?  In  all  our  speeches 
what  is  most  important  may  be  expressed  by 
a  silence,  a  look,  or  a  gesture — even  by  the 
attitude  of  the  body."  Hohay  continued 
rapidly  in  his  argument:  "Is  it  impossible 
that  these  people  might  have  a  simple  lan 
guage,  and  yet  sufficient  for  their  use? 

"All  that  a  man  can  show  for  his  ancestry, 
when  he  is  left  alone  from  infancy,  are  his 
two  legs,  two  arms,  a  round  head,  and  an 
upright  carriage,  or  partially  upright.  We 
know  this  from  those  children  who  have  been 
found  by  wolves  and  nourished  in  their  caves 
until  well  grown.  They  were  like  beasts  and 
without  a  language. 

"It  is  teaching  that  keeps  man  truly  man 
and  keeps  up  the  habits  and  practices  of  his 
ancestors.  It  is  even  so  with  the  animals. 
They,  too,  depend  for  their  proper  skill  and 
development  upon  the  mother  influence, 
encouragement,  and  warning,  the  example 
constantly  set  before  them  which  leads  them 
to  emulate  and  even  surpass  their  elders. 
We  Red  men  have  no  books  nor  do  we  build 
houses  for  schools,  as  the  palefaces  do.  We 
236 


Wild    AnimaJs  from   the    Indian    Stsvnd-point 

are  like  the  bear,  the  beaver,  the  deer,  who 
teach  by  example  and  action  and  experience. 
How  is  it?  Am  I  right?"  the  old  man  ap 
pealed  to  his  attentive  listeners. 

"Yes,  yes,  it  is  true,"  replied  Kangee  and 
Sheyaka,  but  Katola  said  nothing. 

"Is  it  not  our  common  experience,"  re 
sumed  Hohay,  "that  when  we  kill  or  trap 
one  or  two  beaver  in  a  night,  all  the  beaver 
stay  in-doors  for  several  nights  within  a  con 
siderable  distance?  This  is  equally  true  in 
the  case  of  the  otter  and  mink.  I  have 
often  started  up  a  deer,  and  every  deer  he 
passed  in  his  flight  would  also  flee.  But 
when  they  run  at  random  in  play  they  do 
not  cause  a  general  stampede. 

"Their  understanding  of  one  another's  ac 
tions  is  keener  and  quicker  than  we  can  give 
news  by  words,  for  some  are  always  doubt 
ers,  and  then  we  of  the  two-legged  tribe  are 
given  to  lie  at  times,  either  with  or  without 
intention.  This  proves  that  the  animal  does 
not  lack  the  power  to  give  news  or  intelli 
gence  to  his  family  and  neighbors.  If  this 
is  so,  then  they  do  not  lack  means  to  convey 
their  wishes  to  their  young,  which  is  to  teach 
them." 

237 


R_ed   Hunters   e^nd  the  AnimaJ   People 

This  declaration  was  received  in  silence, 
and,  presently,  Hohay  added:  "How  is  it, 
Sheyaka?  Is  it  commonly  accepted  by  our 
hunters  that  some  of  the  four-footed  people 
play  tag  and  hide-and-seek  with  their  little 
ones?" 

"  Ho,  it  is  well  known,"  responded  the  host. 
"  I  have  seen  a  black-tail  doe  run  away  from 
her  fawn  and  hide.  When  the  little  one  ran 
to  find  her,  calling  as  he  seeks,  she  would 
rush  upon  him  playfully  at  last  from  some 
unexpected  nook  or  clump  of  bushes." 

"Once  I  saw  a  beaver,"  continued  Hohay, 
"send  her  whole  family  to  the  opposite  side 
of  the  pond  when  she  was  about  to  fell  a  large 
tree.  One  of  the  young  ones  was  disobedi 
ent  and  insisted  upon  following  the  mother 
to  her  work,  and  he  was  roundly  rebuked. 
The  little  fellow  was  chased  back  to  the  pond, 
and  when  he  dove  down  the  mother  dove 
after  him.  They  both  came  out  near  the 
shore  on  the  opposite  side.  There  she  em 
phatically  slapped  the  water  with  her  tail 
and  dove  back  again.  I  understood  her 
wishes  well,  although  I  am  not  a  beaver." 

"It  is  the  way  of  the  beaver,"  remarked 
Sheyaka,  "not  to  allow  her  children  to  play 
238 


Wild  AnimaJs   from   the  Indian    Stand-point 

out-of-doors  promiscuously  or  expose  them 
selves  to  danger.  She  does  not  take  them 
with  her  to  fell  trees  until  they  are  old 
enough  to  look  out  for  themselves.  But  she 
brings  them  all  out  at  night  to  learn  the 
mother-tricks  and  trade.  She  is  perhaps  the 
wisest  of  all  the  smaller  animals." 

"  The  grizzly  is  an  excellent  mother  of  her 
kind,"  suggested  Kangee.  "I  once  followed 
a  mother  bear  with  two  small  cubs.  As  soon 
as  she  discovered  me,  she  hastened  toward 
a  creek  heavily  fringed  with  buffalo-berry 
bushes.  When  she  disappeared  over  the  bank, 
I  hurriedly  followed  to  see  what  she  would 
do.  She  had  sent  one  of  the  cubs  into  the 
thick  bushes,  and  a  little  farther  on  she  tried 
to  dispose  of  the  other  in  another  good  place, 
but  the  cub  would  not  obey.  It  came  out 
each  time  and  followed  her.  Suddenly  she 
grabbed  and  threw  it  violently  into  a  thicket 
and  then  ran  around  the  creek  and  came  out 
almost  opposite.  There  she  watched  me 
from  under  cover." 

"  Bears,   wolves,   and  foxes,"   commented 

old  Hohay,  "often  cuff  or  slap  their  young 

to    teach    them    obedience.     Katola    might 

say  that  the  obedience  is  inborn  or  instinc- 

239 


Red   Hunters   a.r\d   the   Animal    People 

live,  but  it  is  not.  Young  animals  can  be 
very  rude  and  disobedient  to  their  parents 
when  they  are  small,  but  their  mothers' 
training  is  strict  and  is  continued  until  they 
leave  them.  We  Red  people  have  followed 
their  example.  We  teach  our  children  to 
respect  and  obey  their  elders,"  concluded 
the  old  story-teller. 

"  The  fox  is  a  most  orderly  eater,"  Kangee 
remarked.  "Why,  she  will  not  allow  her 
children  to  eat  greedily!  We  know  that 
when  she  finds  a  nest  full  of  ducks'  eggs — for 
she  is  a  great  egg-stealer  —  she  will  drive 
away  the  excited  young  foxes,  and  roll  out 
egg  after  egg  to  each  one  in  turn.  Each 
must  wait  until  she  serves  him  again." 

"  When  I  was  a  young  man,"  said  Sheyaka, 
"  I  have  often  called  the  fox  for  fun,  when  I 
had  no  intention  of  harming  him.  He  is  a 
keen  and  cunning  hunter,  but  easy  to  fool 
when  you  know  his  weakness.  I  would  imi 
tate  the  squeaking  of  the  larger  field-mouse. 
He  never  hesitates,  but  runs  directly  to  the 
place  where  the  noise  comes  from. 

"Once  I  saw  him  afar  off,  travelling  over 
a  burnt  prairie.  I  lay  down  in  unburnt  tall 
grass,  and  gave  the  mouse-call.  He  came 
240 


Wild    AnimaJs    from   the   Indievn   Stand-point 

on  as  if  he  were  very  hungry,  running  at  top 
speed,  and  I  kept  squeaking  so  as  to  make  it 
seem  as  if  there  were  many  mice. 

"  When  he  reached  the  tall  grass  he  sprang 
high  as  he  came,  and  when  he  jumped  clear 
over  me  I  suddenly  gave  a  war-whoop  and 
waved  my  blanket.  You  should  have  seen 
how  scared  he  was!  He  tried  to  turn  back 
in  mid-air  and  fell  almost  upon  me  so  that  I 
got  hold  of  his  tail.  I  laughed  so  hard  that 
I  could  scarcely  keep  my  hold,  but  the  end 
of  the  matter  was  that  he  left  part  of  his  fine 
brush  with  me.  I  wore  it  for  a  long  time  as 
a  hunting  trophy." 

The  others  laughed  heartily,  but  Katola 
said:  "Ugh,  you  were  not  fair  with  him,  for 
you  invited  him  to  a  feast  and  then  gave  him 
such  a  fright  that  he  would  always  hate  and 
fear  his  brother  man." 

"That  is  true;  yet  at  times  a  hunter  can 
with  propriety  play  a  joke  upon  a  fellow- 
hunter,"  declared  old  Hohay. 

"It  is  strange  that  none  of  the  other  ani 
mals  like  the  Igmu,  the  great  cat  people," 
remarked  Sheyaka,  as  if  he  desired  to  draw 
out  Hohay,  who  had  loosened  the  buffalo- 
robe  around  his  loins  and  settled  down  with 
241 


Red  Hunters    a.nd  the   AnimaJ  People 

the  evident  satisfaction  of  one  who  has 
spoken  his  mind  upon  a  disputed  question. 

"  Toh,  they  are  to  the  others  as  Utes  to  the 
other  Red  men,"  he  replied  at  once.  "  They 
are  unsociable,  queer  people.  Their  speech 
has  no  charm.  They  are  very  bashful  and 
yet  dangerous,  for  no  animal  can  tell  what 
they  are  up  to.  If  one  sees  you  first,  he  will 
not  give  you  a  chance  to  see  so  much  as  the 
tip  of  his  tail.  He  never  makes  any  noise, 
for  he  has  the  right  sort  of  moccasins. 

"  Igmu  scatters  her  family  in  the  summer. 
The  old  pair  go  together ;  the  young  go  singly 
until  paired.  In  the  winter  hunting  they 
often  travel  within  hailing  distance,  but  not 
like  us,  the  woman  following  the  warrior. 
One  goes  up  a  gulch  or  creek  while  the  other 
follows  an  adjacent  creek,  and  they  have  a 
perfect  understanding.  They  feed  in  com 
mon  on  the  game  they  kill,  and  unite  to  op 
pose  a  stranger." 

"Tell  us  something  of  the  customs  of  the 
larger  four-footed  people,  as  the  moose,  elk, 
and  bison,"  urged  Sheyaka.  "  But  it  is  time 
to  smoke,"  he  added,  as  he  passed  to  the  old 
man  a  lighted  pipe. 

"Ho,  ho,  kola;  you  know  an  old  man's 
242 


Wild  AnimaJs   from   the   Indian   St^ncl-point 

weak  points,  Sheyaka!  I  was  about  to  ask 
for  the  pipe,  but  you  have  read  my  thoughts. 
Is  it  not  time  for  a  song  ?  Can  you  not  give 
us  a  buffalo  or  elk  song?  My  stories  will 
move  with  more  life  and  spirit  if  you  bring 
the  animal  people  into  my  presence  with 
your  songs." 

So  Kangee  sang  a  buffalo  song,  a  rude  yet 
expressive  chant,  of  which  the  words  went 
something  like  this  : 

"Ye  the  nation  of  the  west — 

A-hay-hay-a-hay ! 
Ye  the  people  of  the  plains — 

A-hay-hay-a-hay ! 

The  land  is  yours  to  live  and  roam  in; 
You  alone  are  preservers  of  life — 
'Tis  ordained  from  heaven  that  you  should 
preserve  our  lives!" 

"  Oo-oo-oo-oo !"  they  all  joined  in  the  yelps 
which  are  the  amen  of  savage  song. 

Hohay  took  one  or  two  heavy  pulls  on  the 
pipe,  forcing  a  column  of  smoke  through 
his  nostrils,  and  handed  it  back  to  She 
yaka.  He  tightened  the  robe  about  him 
once  more,  and  his  wrinkled  face  beamed 
with  excitement  and  delight  in  his  subject. 

"It  is  from  these  large  and  noble  four- 
243 


R~ed   Hunters   'cxrvd   the   Animal   People 

footed  tribes  that  we  derive  many  of  our  best 
customs,"  he  said,  "especially  from  the  elk 
and  buffalo  people.  But,  boy,  you  have 
danced  well !  Your  father  dances  like  an  old 
bear — where  did  you  learn  the  art?" 

These  savage  jokers  were  highly  personal, 
but  jokes  were  never  resented  in  their  life, 
so  Sheyaka  laughed  heartily  and  good- 
naturedly  with  the  rest. 

"  The  buffalo  and  elk  people  are  among  the 
noblest  on  earth,"  continued  Hohay,  after  the 
laugh  was  ended.  "The  grizzly  is  a  drunk 
en,  mad  fighter,  who  attacks  without  reason. 
He  is  conceited  because  he  is  well  armed,  and 
is  continually  displaying  his  weapons.  The 
great  cat  is  much  more  ready  to  mind  his  own 
business,  but,  after  all,  he  is  much  of  a  cow 
ard.  The  wolf  warriors  are  brave  where  there 
is  meat.  All  these  characteristics  are  shown 
also  among  men. 

"The  buffalo  and  the  elk  fight  only -for 
their  people  and  their  country.  They  do 
not  hunt  among  other  tribes,  and  where  they 
live  together  in  large  numbers  there  are  fewer 
quarrels  than  among  the  same  number  of  men 
together.  They  never  leave  their  children 
until  they  are  able  to  take  care  of  themselves. 
244 


Wild   AnimaJs   from   the   Indian    Sta^rvd-point 

''They  have  made  everything  possible  to 
us  in  our  free  life.  They  supply  us  with  food, 
shelter,  and  clothing,  and  we  in  turn  refrain 
from  needlessly  destroying  the  herds.  Their 
summer  gatherings  are  the  grandest  sight  I 
have  ever  seen. 

"But  I  must  stop,  friends.  There  is  one 
sad  thing  about  all  this.  It  has  just  come 
into  my  mind.  The  wild  man  is  bad  enough, 
but  there  comes  another  man  —  the  paleface 
— who  has  no  heart  for  what  is  dearest  to  us. 
He  wants  the  whole  world  for  himself !  The 
buffalo  disappear  before  him — the  elk  too — 
and  the  Red  man  is  on  the  same  trail.  I  will 
stop  here,  for  it  brings  me  sad  thoughts." 

He  ended,  and  the  others  dropped  their 
heads;  not  a  wrord  was  uttered  after  this* 
turn  of  the  Red  philosopher's  logic.     Hohay 
left  the  teepee,  and  the  others  followed  him 
in  silence. 


Glossary  of  Indian  Words  and  Phrases 


an-pay'-tu  lay  wo'-yu-tay  wa'-tin-kta  me-che'-cha  u'-yay 

yo,  bring  me  food  to-day, 
chan-dee'  o'-ta,  plenty  of  tobacco. 
Cha'-pa,  the  beaver. 
Cha'-pa-wee,  the  female  beaver. 
Chap-chin'-cha,  the  young  beaver. 
e"-na'-ka-nee,  hurry, 
e-ya'-ya  lo,  he  ran  away,  he  is  gone, 
e-yu'-ha  na-hon'  po,  hear  ye  all. 
gle-chu',  come  down, 
han'-ta,  look  out. 
Ha'-ya  Tank-a,  Big  Mountain. 
Hay'-kinsh-kah,  the  spoonhorn  or  bighorn, 
hg'-che'-tu,  it  is  well, 
He-ha'-ka,  the  elk. 
he-he-he,  an  exclamation  of  distress, 
he'-na-ka,  wait. 
He-tunk'-a-la,  the  mouse, 
he-yu'  yo,  come  here. 
He-zee',  Yellow  Teeth — a  nickname, 
hi,  hi,  an  exclamation  of  thanks. 
Hin-han',  the  owl. 
Hin'-pd-ha,  Curly  Hair — nickname  for  yearling  buffalo 

cow. 

Hm-to'-la,  Blue  Hair. 

ho,  yes — denotes  approval,  or  a  salutation. 
Ho'-hay,  Assiniboine. 

247 


R.ed   Hunters    a.nd  the  Animal   People 

Hoo'-tay,  Claws  or  Stubby  Claws — nickname  for  a  bear. 

Hoo'-yah,  the  female  eagle. 

ho-ya',  run  of  fish. 

ho-yay,  come  on,  let  us  do  it. 

hu'-ka-hay',  come  on. 

hun-hun-hay',  an  exclamation  of  surprise. 

Ig-mu'-tank-a,  the  puma. 

Ig-tin',  Long  Whiskers — a  nickname  for  a  puma. 

in  ah'-jin,  stop  or  stand  still. 

Kam-do'-ka,  Slaps  the  Water— nickname  for  a  beaver. 

Kan-gee',  the  raven. 

Ka-to'-la,  Knocks. 

ko-la',  or  koda,  friend. 

koo'-wah  yay  y5,  come  here. 

Ma-ke'-ze-ta,  Smoking  Earth — name  of  a  river. 

Man'-i-too,  the  wolf — abbreviation  of  shunk-man'-i-too. 

Ma-to',  the  bear. 

Ma-to'-ska,  White  Bear. 

ma-ya'-la,  a  steep  place. 

ma-ya'-ska,  white  cliff. 

Min-ne-tonk'-a,  Great  Water — name  of  a  lake. 

O-pa'-gS-la,  Fills  the  Pipe. 

Pa-da'-nee,  Pawnee. 

Pez-pez'-a,  the  prairie-dog. 

Pez-pez'-a   t£   a'-yan-pa'-ha-la,   the    prairie  -  dog's    herald 

(the  owl). 

Ptay-san'-wee,  White  Cow. 

Se'-chan-gu,  Burnt  Thighs — nickname  of  a  band  of  Sioux. 
Sha-e'-ye-la,  Cheyenne. 
She-ya'-ka,  the  diver. 
Shun-ge'-la,  the  fox. 
Shun-ge'-la  pa-hah',  Fox  Ridge. 
Shunk-man'-i-too,  the  wolf. 
Shunk-to'-ke-chah,  the  wolf. 
Sink-pay',  the  musk-rat. 
Sin-tay,  Tail — a  nickname. 

248 


Glossary  of  Indian   Words  a^nd   Phrases 

Sin-tay'-ha-dah,   Rattle  Tail,   the  rattlesnake. 

Sin-tay'-ksa,  Bob-tail — a  nickname. 

ta-chin'-chan-a,  fawn  or  lamb. 

Ta-do'-ta,  Plenty  of  Meat. 

Tak'-cha,  the  deer. 

ta-k5'-ja,  grandchild. 

Ta-tank'-a,  the  bull. 

Ta-wa'-hink-pay-o'-ta,  Many  Arrows. 

tee'-pee,  lodge. 

Te-o'-la,  Wounded  in  the  Lodge. 

te-y5'-tee-pee,  council-lodge. 

tosh,  certainly,  of  course. 

tu-la',  an  exclamation  of  satisfaction. 

tun-ka'-she-la,  grandfather. 

Un-spS'-shnee,  Don't  Know  How. 

U-pan'-O-koo-tay,  Elk  Point;  the  place  where  elk  are  shot. 

Wa-coo'-tay,  Shoots. 

Wa-de'-ta-ka,  Brave. 

Wak-pa'-g-pak-shan,  Bend  of  the  River. 

Wak-pa'-la  she'-cha,  Bad  River. 

Wam-be-lee',  the  eagle. 

Wash-a'-ka,   strong. 

Wash-tay',  good. 

Wa-su'-la,  Little  Hail. 

Wa-zee'-yah,  the  god  of  cold  or  winter  ;    the  north. 

We-chah',  the  raccoon. 

We-chah'-ta-wee',   February — the  coon's  month. 

Ws'-ta-o'-ta,  Lake  ot  Many  Islands. 

woo,  woo,  a  war-whoop. 

wo'-pa-ta,  place  of  killing  or  dressing  game. 

Ze-chah',  the  squirrel. 

Zu'-ya,  warrior. 


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